India should give more tax incentives for R&D: Deloitte

With research and development playing a crucial role in industrial development, India should give more tax incentives and put in place easier approval process for these activities, global financial consultancy firm Deloitte has said.      

Giving a wish list for the incentives to encourage R&D activities in India, Deloitte said, "Based on R&D incentives available in the EU countries and other jurisdictions across the globe, the Indian government could make the R&D incentive regime more robust and attractive."      

India, at present, is providing various tax benefits for research activities. For instance, the corporate tax rate in India is 33.99% . But if some amount is spent on research intensive entities, deduction of 125 to 150% of that amount is made from income to arrive at the tax liability.      

The survey on global R&D by Deloitte suggested that the government could grant a higher deduction and also that the government grant for research and development in priority sectors should increase.      

The role of research & development (R&D) in the growth of industrial development in economy cannot be underestimated. In the current scenario of the fast changing technology, it is often a crucial factor which decides the survival of various companies, the survey said.