India has notified a 62,500-crore rupee smartphone manufacturing scheme. The policy aims to push Apple beyond iPhones and shift Google device exports away from China.
Replacing the earlier production-linked incentive programme, the scheme runs through the 2030-31 financial year to deepen local component sourcing.
Electronics and IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said New Delhi expects Apple to expand into other product categories using its existing iPhone assembly base. Google will also route a major share of export-oriented device production away from Chinese facilities into Indian factories.
Manufacturers can claim incentives between 2.25 per cent and 5 per cent on eligible sales under the framework. An extra payout of up to 1.5 per cent applies to firms sourcing parts locally, including display modules, camera assemblies, enclosures, batteries and USB cables.
Incentives for domestic brands and design
Domestic brands get a dedicated track. Indian smartphone makers qualify for a 5 per cent sales incentive, alongside a 3 per cent reward for local research, development and product design. The government is working with three domestic companies to launch high-volume device designs within 10 to 14 months.
Official data shows mobile phones delivered 61 per cent of India’s electronics exports last year, up from 4 per cent in the 2014-15 fiscal year, according to Electronics and IT secretary S Krishnan. Mobile device output now accounts for 48 per cent of total domestic electronics production, up from 10 per cent a decade ago. Overall phone exports grew 166-fold between 2014 and 2025 at a compound annual rate of about 59 per cent. India is now the world’s second-largest phone maker by volume.
Moving from assembly to component integration
Global electronics brands across Asia face fresh pressure to localise sub-assemblies rather than snap imported kits together in final assembly plants. Competitors in Vietnam and China will face sharper export competition as Indian suppliers scale up module fabrication.
Attention now shifts to the 10-to-14 month delivery window for the three state-backed Indian phone designs, alongside Apple’s first confirmed hardware assembly lines outside the iPhone family.