"Tesla is in the pipeline," says minister Balvantsinh Rajput says ahead of Vibrant Gujarat summit

"I want to state that Tesla is in the pipeline, the minister said in response to reporters' questions at a presser. "Quite a few companies are in touch. Talks are going on at higher levels, and we are positive," the minister added. Weighing in on the Tesla investment matter, SJ Haider, Additional Chief Secretary, Industries and Mines Department, said, "We have more than 20 investor policies and we are a policy-driven state. We have policies for semiconductors, IT, and electronics. We assist within the rules and regulations of the policy." Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk in June last year that he was planning to visit India in 2024, adding that he was confident that the electric carmaker will be in India and will do so "as soon as humanly possible." He had told reporters in New York, following a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was in a historic four-day State visit to the US. Musk had said that PM Modi invited him to India. "I would like to thank PM Modi for his support and hopefully, we will be able to announce something in the future," Musk had said. Tesla has been interested in investing in India but "high import duty" structures apparently were a bone of contention. Musk had reportedly requested India to lower taxes and also allow the company to first sell vehicles built elsewhere at a competitive price. Import duty in India is 25 to 100 per cent on completely built unit (CBU) vehicles. In November 2023, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal visited Tesla's manufacturing facility in California's Fremont and said that the US electric car maker is on its way to double its components imports from India. Goyal had stressed that he was proud to see the growing importance of auto component suppliers from India in the Tesla EV supply chain. (ANI)