US based iPhone giant, Apple has given a presentation to DIPP (Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion), where it has explained why it should be exempted from the mandatory local sourcing norms.
As per the FDI (foreign direct investment), the Government may offer some relaxation to local sourcing norms, to the entities with single brand retailing of products, which have state-of-the-art and cutting edge technology and there is no scope for local sourcing.
The Government has formed a committee which will analyse, if a product is state-of-the-art and whether it is eligible for the exemption under FDI single brand retail trading. The companies will have to take a FIPB permission if the limit exceeds 49 per cent.
The committee is headed by Secretary in the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) Ramesh Abhishek.
Apple sells its products through Apple-owned retail stores located in China, Germany, the US, the UK and France. In India, it sells its products through distributors like Redington and Ingram Micro.
Following the suit, Xiaomi has also forwarded an application, seeking permission to open outlets in India.