Bihar to focus on electronics equipment manufacturing

After success in food processing, the information technology (IT) and telecom hardware manufacturing has caught the eyes of Bihar government. The state has now decided to give special attention to this sector and plans to declare it as a "thrust area".

"We may have missed the BPO bus," said Naveen Verma, principal secretary of the Industries Department, "but we do not want to miss this opportunity. The central government has already announced, in its National Policy on Electronics, that use of locally made component will be encouraged. The policy makes the use of local component mandatory for electronics manufacturers. It is a huge opportunity for us as the policy offers fiscal incentives." The policy, which was introduced last year, aims to boost indigenous manufacturing of electronic goods, so that it can fill the gap between domestic demand and supply in electronics goods.