India Notifies ₹625-billion Mobile Manufacturing Scheme

The Indian government notified a ₹625 billion mobile phone manufacturing scheme aimed at boosting global competitiveness, increasing domestic value addition and supporting Indian-owned brands, the electronics ministry said.

The five-year Mobile Phone Manufacturing Scheme will run from 2026-27 through 2030-31 and is expected to drive cumulative production of about ₹39 trillion and generate around 60,000 direct jobs.

The scheme will offer incentives of 2.25%-5% for mobile phone manufacturing.

Indian brands will be eligible for a 5% incentive, with an additional 3% available for Indian design and research and development.

Manufacturers can also receive an additional incentive of up to 1.5% for domestic sourcing of key components and sub-assemblies, provided locally sourced components are used in at least 25% of mobile phones produced during a financial year.

Electronics Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said India could see its first strong indigenous mobile phone brand by mid-2027.

The government will assess whether the design, intellectual property and brand ownership of applicants seeking incentives as Indian brands are genuinely domestic, the ministry said.

Under the manufacturing segment, companies must be registered in India and have had minimum turnover of ₹100 billion in 2025-2026. Existing brands must achieve incremental annual sales of at least ₹50 billion over their 2025-2026 base.

For the Indian-brand segment, applicants must have had minimum turnover of ₹10 billion in 2025-2026. More than 51% of their shareholding must be held by Indian citizens, while intellectual property, trademarks, management control and research and design capabilities must be based in India.

The new programme follows the expiry of the production-linked incentive scheme for large-scale electronics manufacturing on March 31.

India is the world's second-largest mobile phone manufacturer by volume, while 99.2% of mobile phones used domestically are made in the country, according to the government.

Smartphones became India's largest exported product category in 2025, overtaking products including diesel fuel and cut diamonds, the ministry said.