Big local mkt, rising labour cost abroad favour India: IT Min

Rising labour costs overseas and a huge market with a population of 1.25 billion make India an attractive destination for investments in electronics manufacturing segment, Union Minister PP Chaudhary today said.
"There are two factors -- pull and push. The pull factor is looking at 1.25 billion population and vast area. Many companies are therefore, investing in India. The push factor is all over the world.
"If you look at China or America, the per hour professional charge is USD 3.5 but in India it is less than USD 1. This is the place where both pull and push factor are working together," Chaudhary, the Minister of State for Law and IT, said at an Assocham event.

He said that India is home to a burgeoning middle class population coupled with rising disposable incomes which has led to rise in the demand for electronic products.
The demand for electronics hardware in the country is projected to increase from USD 45 billion in 2009 to USD 400 billion by 2020, he said.
He said that the the Ministry of Electronics and IT (Meity) has initiated schemes such as the Modified Special Incentive Package Scheme (M-SIPS), Electronic Manufacturing Clusters (EMCs), Information Technology Investment Region (ITIRs), Electronic Development Fund (EDF) etc. To attract global companies to set up their manufacturing base in India.

Till date, investment proposals worth Rs 1.43 lakh crore have been received by the government. The total investment proposal till 2014 was over Rs 11,000 crore.

Investment in mobile manufacturing has increased from 18,992 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 89,756 crore in 2016-17 as per data disclosed by Meity.
Around 80 companies have set up their factories in India which operate in mobile phone segment.
Chaudhary said that the government has also amended its general financial rules (GFR) and made special provisions on its digital procurement platform -- Government e-Marketplace (GeM) to give a boost to the start-ups and local manufacturing of goods and services in the country.

Besides this, he said, Meity has initiated a scheme for skill development in electronics system, design and manufacturing (ESDM) segment to train people at an outlay of Rs 411 crore over a period of four years.
"We need to increase our productive IPR assets and contribute towards developing and strengthening the R&D innovation ecosystem in the country," Chaudhary said.
He asked the electronic industry to contribute in developing the course content and curriculum of the ESDM related courses being taught by NIELIT Centers across the country and also to proactively participate in the job fairs organised by these centres to recruit top-quality personnel.