Less progress made in design, component mfg in electronics industry: Survey

Indigenous electronics production increased multifold in the last 10 years to reach Rs 9.52 trillion in 2023-24, the Economic Survey said, but pointed out that the industry has largely focused on assembly, making limited progress in design and component manufacturing.

However, India’s electronics market represents 4 per cent of the global market, the survey, which was tabled in Parliament on Friday, said.

“Programmes such as Make in India and Digital India, along with improved infrastructure, ease of doing business, and various incentives, have boosted domestic manufacturing and drawn foreign investments.

“However, India’s electronics market represents 4 per cent of the global market. The industry has largely focused on assembly, with limited progress in design and component manufacturing,” the survey said.

According to the survey, domestic production of electronic goods has increased substantially from Rs 1.90 trillion in FY15 to Rs 9.52 trillion in FY24, registering a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.5 per cent.

The increase in mobile manufacturing has reduced dependence on imports with 99 per cent of the total smartphone requirement being produced indigenously, according to the survey.

The country produced about 33 crore mobile phone units, with over 75 per cent of the models being 5G-enabled in FY24.

“The key drivers of growth have been the large domestic market, availability of skilled talent, and low-cost labour,” the report said.

The survey said that production-linked incentive (PLI) schemes gave a boost to domestic electronic manufacturing and it was evident in the mobile phone segment.

“In FY15, mobile phone imports accounted for 78 per cent of the market in value terms, whereas by FY23 this figure had dropped to just 4 per cent. In terms of volume, only 0.8 per cent of mobile phones were imported in FY23.

“Exports tell a similar story. Mobile phone exports, valued at zero in FY16, soared to Rs 88,726 crore in FY23,” the survey added.