Centre may remove minimum investment requirement in PLI scheme for drugmakers: Report

The Centre may remove the minimum investment requirement for eligibility to its production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for manufacturers of medical devices and drug ingredients, after complaints that the conditions are “too restrictive”, said a report by Mint.

The Centre is “actively considering liberalising the PLI scheme” following feedback from the industry, one source said, as per the report.

Moneycontrol could not independently verify the report.

Another source said updated requirements for the scheme will likely be out within a week and extension of deadline for application (currently November 23, 2020) is also being considered due to the updated rules.

The matters were discussed in a meeting last week, which included NITI Aayog chief Amitabh Kant, officials from Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP) and other government departments.

DoP is implementing the scheme, which is aimed at reducing Indian dependence on China for active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and medical raw materials.