Smartphones have emerged as the single largest exported product category from India in 2025

Smartphones have emerged as the single largest exported product category from India in 2025

Smartphones have emerged as the single largest exported product category from India in 2025

• The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) notified the Mobile Phone Manufacturing Scheme (MPMS), with a budgetary outlay of Rs 62,500 crore. 

What is the significance of MPMS?

• Mobile phone manufacturing has emerged as the anchor of India’s electronics manufacturing ecosystem. 

• India is now the world’s second-largest mobile phone manufacturer by volume, with 99.2 per cent of mobile phones used in India being manufactured domestically.

• Smartphones have emerged as the single largest exported product category from India in 2025, surpassing traditional leading export items such as diesel fuel and cut diamonds. 

• Mobile phones now constitute a major share of India’s electronics production and exports and are playing a critical role in strengthening India’s position in global value chains.

• The Production Linked Incentive Scheme for Large Scale Electronics Manufacturing has played a transformative role in establishing India as a global hub for mobile manufacturing and exports. The tenure of the PLI scheme ended on March 31, 2026.

• To sustain this growth momentum and further scale up production of mobile phones, the government has notified the new scheme.

Highlights of the scheme:

• The government launched the scheme to further scale up production, deepen domestic value addition, strengthen supply chain resilience and  enhance global competitiveness. 

• MPMS also aims at building Indian brands to achieve technological sovereignty, capture large economic value and create Indian patents in design and R&D.

• The scheme tenure shall be five years from FY 2026-27 to FY 2030-31.

• The scheme provides incentive support on eligible sales for manufacturing of mobile phones in India at differentiated rates ranging from 2.25 per cent to 5 per cent. 

• It also provides additional incentive of up to 1.5 per cent linked to domestic sourcing of key components/sub-assemblies. 

• MPMS will also support Indian mobile phone brands to achieve technological sovereignty, capture greater economic value, and encourage Indian patents in design and R&D, while generating employment.

• The scheme will provide a significant impetus to the development of Indian-owned mobile brands, intellectual property and design. 

Implementation of the scheme

The MPMS has been divided in two parts:

i) Target segment 1 - Incentivising mobile phone manufacturing.

ii) Target segment 2 - Supporting Indian mobile phone brands.

• In the first segment, the scheme provides a differentiated incentive ranging from 2.25 per cent to 5 per cent. 

• Mobile phone companies, including electronics contract manufacturers, with a turnover of Rs 10,000 crore in FY26 will be eligible for MPMS benefits.

• In the second segment, the scheme provides an incentive at 5 per cent for Indian brands and an additional incentive of 3 per cent for Indian design and R&D. 

• Mobile phone companies, including electronic manufacturing services (EMS) firms applying in the second segment will need to have 51 per cent Indian ownership, and a turnover of Rs 1,000 crore in FY26 to be eligible for participation in the scheme.

Expected outcomes:

• During the scheme tenure, the cumulative mobile phone production in the country is expected to reach approximately Rs 39 lakh crore with significant increase in exports of mobile phones. 

• The scheme is also expected to generate around 60,000 direct jobs thereby contributing to economic growth, employment generation and strengthening India’s position in global electronics manufacturing hub.