Make in India’ Triumphs: Telecom Equipment Production Surpasses 50,000 Crore Milestone Under PLI Scheme

New Delhi:  Driven by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ vision, domestic manufacturing has received a substantial boost. Under the Ministry of Communications’ Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, the telecom and networking equipment manufacturing sector has achieved a historic milestone, with cumulative production officially surpassing the 50,000 crore benchmark.

Over the course of three years, the Telecom PLI scheme has spurred remarkable industrial expansion. The initiative has successfully attracted more than 3,400 crore in direct investments, generated approximately 10,500 crore in exports, and created over 17,800 direct jobs alongside hundreds of thousands of indirect employment opportunities.

Furthermore, strategic support for local manufacturing has drastically reduced India’s dependence on foreign imports. The sector has achieved nearly 60% import substitution, fostering domestic self-reliance in the production of critical technologies such as antennas, Gigabit Passive Optical Networks (GPON), and Customer Premises Equipment (CPE).

Official trade figures reflect this transformation, with total exports of telecom and mobile equipment reaching 1.49 lakh crore against imports of 1.53 lakh crore in FY 2023–24. Over the past five years, the telecom trade deficit has plummeted from 68,000 crore to just 4,000 crore, effectively transitioning India from a net importer to a premier global manufacturing and export hub.