US-based mobilephone giant Apple may soon get an answer to its ambitious plans in India. A Committee of Secretaries will meet on Saturday to discuss issues around Apple’s manufacturing facility in India, including full exemption from domestic-sourcing norms and repair inputs and single-brand retail trading.

Apple has been seeking exemption from the 30 per cent domestic-sourcing norms on the ground that it makes ‘state-of-the-art’ and ‘cutting-edge’ technology products for which local sourcing is not possible.

The government had turned down the request and also the firm’s proposal to import refurbished phones and sell them in India.

But, now the government is ready to at least look into the requests. The meeting follows Apple’s recent letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking the Centre’s support in addressing some ‘pre-requisites’ the company thinks would benefit the objectives of Make in India.

“The meeting is scheduled for January 21, and the Committee of Secretaries includesthe Secretaries of the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, the Commerce Ministry and the Ministry of Electronics and IT,” a government official told BusinessLine .

According to other sources, Amitabh Kant, Chief Executive Officer at NITI Aayog, is also expected to attend the meeting.

“Some conditions (pre-requisites) such as full exemption on manufacturing and repair inputs (raw materials), advance pricing agreement process, and single-brand retail trading, may impact others and raise questions to the government,” said a senior government official.

According to some experts and officials from within the government, it would disturb the balance and may also impact the present trend of mobile manufacturing in India, if all the ‘pre-requisites’ are considered for Apple in India.

‘Structures request’

Having said that, the official also said the ‘final call’ is most likely be taken by the Prime Minister himself after all due diligence. According to Minister of Electronics and IT Ravi Shankar Prasad, India welcomes Apple in India, but only if there is a “structured request”.

“If a structured request comes from them, we will surely consider with an open mind,” he had told reporters after a Cabinet briefing on Thursday.

If all considered, the Cupertino-based company is planning to enter India in two phases — a manufacturing facility by April-May, and an expansion of the capacity to fulfil domestic demand and expand to some of the export markets, too — as per the letter to the Prime Minister. A team from Apple will also give a presentation on January 25 to senior officials of various government departments.

However, the government is also under pressure because there have been a lot of reports saying other manufacturers would be impacted if the government favours the iPhone and iPad maker.

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