- Samsung stopped TV production at its Chennai plant in October 2018 after a 5 per cent customs duty was levied on open cell panels
- The company started importing TVs from Vietnam through the free trade agreement route at nil duty
- Samsung plans to expand its mobile phone production in India through contract manufacturing
- Samsung is about to sign a deal with an Indian manufacturer for feature phones and Taiwan’s Wistron Corporation for smartphones
A high-powered committee on electronics set up by the Prime Minister’s Office is said to have expressed concern over Samsung Electronics’ decision to stop manufacturing LED televisions in the country. The committee wants the South Korean company to be committed to the ‘Make in India’ initiative.
The government committee’s task is to assess the potential of ‘Make in India’ in the current geopolitical scenario and propose a policy framework to attract global investment in Indian electronics manufacturing.
Samsung stopped TV production at its Chennai plant in October 2018 after a 5 per cent customs duty was levied on open cell panels, a key component that accounts for 65-70 per cent of the total production cost of a television. The company started importing TVs from Vietnam through the free trade agreement route at nil duty.
Samsung to start manufacturing again?
Samsung informed the committee that it can start LED TV panel and TV set production at its Chennai plant only if the government scraps the customs duty on open cell panels, two senior industry executives said to Economic Times.
The News Daily reported that the government committee had expressed to Samsung India that its decision to move television production to Vietnam has been a blotch on ‘Make in India’ and wants the company to remain committed.
At the same time, Samsung plans to expand its mobile phone production in India through contract manufacturing and is about to sign a deal with an Indian manufacturer for feature phones and Taiwan’s Wistron Corporation for smartphones, the executives said to ET.
