Govt plans to streamline visa process for Chinese and foreign experts in non-PLI sectors

The government is working to streamline the process of granting visas to experts from China and other countries for PLI beneficiaries working in essential sectors, a senior government official said on Thursday.

The government has already streamlined the visa process for professionals and experts from industries availing benefits under the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme. Responding to queries on what kind of visa process easing is being considered for China and other countries under the PLI scheme, DPIIT Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh said the government is working on the matter. He said there is already a streamlined visa process for PLI beneficiaries.

“We are trying to extend this to other non-PLI beneficiaries who are in the same strategic sectors because we felt that… one gets a subsidy and visa approval. The other does not get a subsidy but at least they should also get a streamlined process,” Singh said.

He added that the government is working on developing a similar, streamlined process for beneficiaries who are not covered under PLI but are operating in sectors covered under PLI.

“The final decision is yet to be taken but we are moving in that direction and we are hopeful that it will happen,” the Secretary said, adding that initially the streamlined process will cover 14 PLI sectors.

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The Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of External Affairs will take the final decision, Singh said. The central government announced the PLI scheme in 2021. When asked if more sectors would be included in the PLI scheme, he said internal consultations were on. The industry is still demanding that the scheme be extended to other sectors, he said.

In response to a query on price indices, the DPIIT Secretary said his department deals only with the Wholesale Price Index (WPI), while the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) deals with other statistical indices, including the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

“I suppose you could expect some sort of update to the base year eventually… So it’s again an ongoing process unless we take a decision, which I really can’t (say),” Singh said. The secretary also said the e-commerce policy is on the anvil.
On the industry’s demand to scrap angel tax, Singh said that based on consultations with the startup ecosystem, “we have recommended it in the past as well and I think we have recommended it this time as well.” But ultimately, an integrated approach will be taken by the finance ministry, he said.

First message: Jul 04, 2024 at 20:21 IST