‘Licence-free import of laptops only till October 31’

NEW DELHI: The government has received interest from companies such as HP and Dell towards its new and upgraded production-linked incentive scheme for IT hardware manufacturing and has made it clear that there will be “no more extensions” beyond the October 31 deadline for those selling laptops in India through the import route without a licence.

A top source in the IT & electronics ministry told TOI that the government remains firm on the deadline by when licence-free imports will be allowed, even when there is demand from the industry to extend the relaxation by around 9-12 months. “From November 1, the new rule that mandates a licence for importing laptops and tablets to India will come into play. This date will be maintained,” the source said.