India to offer up to $6.7b in incentives for electronics production, weaning off China
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India’s electronics production has more than doubled in the last six years, led by growth in mobile manufacturing by global companies such as Apple.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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NEW DELHI - India will offer up to US$5 billion (S$6.7 billion) in incentives to companies to make components locally for gadgets from mobiles to laptops, two government officials said, in a bid to bolster the burgeoning industry and wean itself off supplies from China.
India’s electronics production has more than doubled in the last six years to US$115 billion in 2024, led by growth in mobile manufacturing by global companies such as Apple
It is now the world’s fourth-largest smartphone supplier.
But the sector faces criticism for its heavy reliance on imported components from countries such as China.
“The new scheme will incentivise production of key components like printed circuit boards that will improve domestic value addition and deepen local supply chains for a range of electronics,” one of the two officials said.
The incentives are likely to be offered under a new scheme that is expected to be launched in two to three months, said the officials, who asked not to be identified as details of the scheme are not yet public.
The scheme is likely to offer incentives totalling between US$4 billion and US$5 billion to global or local companies that qualify.
The plan, designed by India’s electronics ministry, has identified components eligible for incentives and is in its final stages.
The finance ministry will approve the scheme’s final allocation soon, the first official added.
The two ministries did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
India is aiming to expand its electronics manufacturing to US$500 billion by fiscal year 2030, including production of components worth US$150 billion, according to the government’s top policy think-tank Niti Aayog.
India imported electronics, telecommunications gear and electrical products worth US$89.8 billion in fiscal year 2024, with more than half sourced from China and Hong Kong, according to an analysis by private think-tank GTRI.
“This scheme is coming at a time when it is critical to promote component manufacturing that will help us aim for a global scale of electronics production,” said Mr Pankaj Mohindroo, head of India’s Cellular and Electronics Association. REUTERS
