Gov’t to consider PLI scheme for chemicals and petrochemicals industry: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman

Govt. to consider PLI scheme for Chemicals & Petrochemicals sector to make India a manufacturing hub. FM Sitharaman said India offers a large domestic market & policies to facilitate global manufacturers.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on July 27 said the government will consider the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for Chemicals and Petrochemicals sector to make India a manufacturing hub for such products.

In view of stringent pollution control regulations and rising labour cost, she said, global manufacturers in the chemical industry are looking at diversifying their products and production capability and India stands out as an alternative destination for manufacturing.

Besides, India offers a large domestic market, she said while addressing the third edition of the summit on ‘Global Chemicals and Petrochemicals Manufacturing Hubs in India’.

“If viable options exist, it exists in such markets where there is a domestic buffer and beyond which there is an export potential. So that is where the government’s policies have been facilitating,” she said.

“We are in favour of having India becoming a manufacturing hub and therefore of course we will consider the PLI also for the chemicals and petrochemicals,” she added.

She emphasised that the industry which has great potential should create manufacturing capacity keeping in mind sustainability, carbon emission, general pollution and groundwater pollution etc.

“We should remember that India has set its sights on becoming energy independent by 2047 and achieving net zero by 2070. So net zero cannot be achieved unless each industry and each sector contributes to it.