NITI report recommends expanding PLI scheme to leather, footwear, furniture

While, the Centre is said to be considering expanding the PLI scheme to leather, footwear and furniture, there is no such plan under consideration for handicrafts so far.

The government could consider expanding its Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes to include labour-intensive sectors such as leather, footwear, furniture,
and handicrafts, according to a report by NITI Aayog released on July 14.

This would support MSMEs and boost export competitiveness, the think-tank's report, called Trade Watch Quarterly for October-December (Q3) FY25, said. The report added that presently most PLI schemes are output-based and not explicitly linked to exports.

It also batted for establishing a Quality Upgradation Fund to incentivise MSMEs in meeting international quality benchmarks, certifications, and sustainability requirements.

While the Centre is said to be considering expanding the PLI scheme to leather, footwear and furniture, there is no such plan under consideration for handicrafts so far.

The government has committed around Rs 1.97 lakh crore for various PLI schemes for a period of five years starting 2021-22 to help bring scale and size in key sectors, create and nurture global champions and provide jobs to youth.

While sectors like large-scale electronics manufacturing have seen unparalleled success, others such as steel and textiles have lagged behind. Given this, the government is now exploring non-PLI schemes to ramp up production and exports.

Though the scheme, since inception, has witnessed investments worth Rs 1.76 lakh crore, the cumulative incentive amount is at only Rs 21,534 crore till March 2025 for 12 sectors such as Large-Scale Electronics Manufacturing (LSEM), IT hardware, pharmaceuticals, among others.