Xiaomi has been counting heavily on the Indian smartphone market. To make even more out of it, the company had applied for a single brand retail license in India. The license would have enabled Xiaomi to open its single-brand retail stores in India. But the application has been put on hold by the Indian government. Xiaomi has been asked to submit more documents to get through the licensing process.
As per new FDI rules in India, the foreign companies that carry cutting edge and state-of-the-art technology to India can now open their single brand outlets without meeting the 30% mandatory procurement of material locally subject to government approval. However, in a conversation with the Economic Times, a senior government official said, "Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) will forward the said application to the "cutting edge panel" only when the company submits all the details that are to be considered for exempting it from the 30% sourcing norm,"
To clear the air, Xiaomi's spokesperson said,"We are in constant discussion with the department for small clarifications and have not met any major obstacles to date. We are unable to comment further on the specifics of the application as it is still being processed,"
Interestingly, Xiaomi was rooting for an exemption from the 30 percent sourcing norm for its wide range of products such as Bluetooth speakers, power banks and much more. To get around with the norm, the company placed the products under the category of "state-of-the-art".
Well, it would be interesting to see if Xiaomi mobiles gets through the process on its desired terms. We will keep you updated on the matter.
