Hardware industry needs direction, says Mait official

"The industry is not confused, it is just looking for direction. The duty free regime is untested waters for all of us. We are all mentally tuned to expect at least a reasonable amount of protection in the form of import duties. But they have to realise that the duty free regime, while opening doors for MNCs to bring in their products more freely, might also open doors for local manufacturers," said Vinnie Mehta, executive director, MAIT (Manufacturers Association for Information Technology) to Business Standard on the sidelines of a seminar on the 'Implications of the Duty Free Regime' held in Bangalore on Monday.

He added that "for far too long, our Indian manufacturers have been confined to the domestic market. Also, in any difficulty or change, there will be fast movers and there will be followers. Eventually, I am sure the Indian IT manufacturing industry will survive."

When asked about MAIT as a direction provider to the industry, he replied, "We are not here to give direction. I have been working on getting more MNCs and EMS (equipment manufacturers) to set up their plants in the country.