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Our Bureau

Duty relief for components sought

Hyderabad , Jan. 8

The domestic hardware industry is awaiting a policy boost to the sector and this is likely to come up during the Budget, according to the Electronics and Computer Software Export Promotion Council.

The Chairman of ESC, Mr Nalin Kohli, said "there are a few concerns for the hardware sector hindering its growth. We expect these to be addressed either independently or as a part of the semiconductor policy, which is also likely to be announced. This would then bring Indian companies on par with their counterparts in Taiwan and China."

"The ESC, which represents about 2,300 technology and electronics companies, has about 1,300 of them in the software and services and the rest 1,000 in the hardware sector. While one can import hardware with zero duty, the components required for hardware attract duty, which makes the domestic hardware unviable in comparison to some neighbouring countries. The policy we are looking for is expected to provide a level playing field and help it grow," he said.

Of the $24 billion, only $2 billion comes from the hardware sector. Once there is parity, ESC expects the hardware sector to contribute significantly to the domestic market.

Addressing a press conference here, along with Mr K Sareen, Executive Director of ESC, Mr Kohli said the council expects to see the sector growing at about 35 per cent this year and numbers would be announced later during the year.

Indiasoft 2007

Speaking about Indiasoft 2007 being held at Hyderabad on January 9-10, Mr Kohli said the seventh meeting is being held at Hyderabad where over 90 exhibitors and some 150 foreign delegates would participate in this B2B (business to business) platform.

While the theme continues to be centred around small and medium sized enterprises, the focus would be on business services, communications and entertainment, electronic governance and healthcare. The emphasis is on non-traditional markets of European Union, Latin America, West Asia and Africa.

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