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Informist, Wednesday, Jul. 8, 2026

 

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--NITI Aayog official: PLI for current sectors cannot last forever 
--CONTEXT: NITI Aayog Programme Director Thakur at FICCI event on investment 
--NITI Aayog official: Govt incentive to promote R&D not the right solution 
--NITI Aayog official: Govt working with states to push de-regulation

 
NEW DELHI – The production-linked incentive scheme cannot last forever for the 14 sectors for which it is underway, Rajeev Singh Thakur, programme director at government policy think tank NITI Aayog, said Wednesday. While the scheme had delivered on the vision behind it by bringing about import substitution and increasing production, it was time for the government to move beyond it, he said.

 

"You're all aware that there are so many sectors and for these (14) sectors, PLI cannot be forever, it is only a signal or statement of intent from the government," Thakur said at an event on investment organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry here.

 

The scheme was launched in 2020 initially for three sectors before being expanded to sectors such as auto and auto components and mobile manufacturing. Thakur said the scheme had delivered on the vision behind it over the past six years. Asked if it would be more useful to transition to a productivity-linked incentive scheme, the NITI Aayog adviser said supervision of productivity would be difficult to bring about on the factory floor.

 

While the government has ramped up its capital expenditure over the past few years, the lack of commensurate private-sector investment has proven to be puzzling for the government, Thakur said. He said NITI Aayog was working to bring about a reduction in regulation as part of its aim to promote ease of doing business. Moreover, Cabinet Secretary T.V. Somanathan had formed a panel with secretary-level appointees to work closely with states to ease local regulations and promote manufacturing and industry, Thakur said.

 

In his consultations with stakeholders, the NITI Aayog adviser said there was no big industry push to ask the government to incentivise research and development. Last year, the Cabinet approved the Research, Development and Innovation Scheme with a fund of INR 1 trillion to promote long-term investment into research. On Tuesday, at another FICCI event, Technology Development Board Secretary Rajesh Kumar Pathak said the industry had committed to increasing its research and development spending. 

 

"But one thing is clear that incentives from the government to promote R&D in the private sector I think that will not be the right solution," NITI Aayog's Thakur said. "That is clearly one consensus..."  End

 

Reported by Aaryan Khanna

Edited by Deepshikha Bhardwaj

 

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