Parliament Question: Make-in-India, PLI and rising import dependence

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY DEPARTMENT FOR PROMOTION OF INDUSTRY AND INTERNAL TRADE RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1643. TO BE ANSWERED ON FRIDAY, THE 13TH FEBRUARY, 2026. MAKE-IN-INDIA, PLI AND RISING IMPORT DEPENDENCE 1643. SHRI VIVEK K. TANKHA: Will the Minister of Commerce and Industry be pleased to state: (a) the reasons for increase in India’s dependence on imports in critical sectors such as electronics, chemicals and capital goods despite Make-in-India and Production - Linked Incentive (PLI) Schemes; (b) the reasons for widening of trade deficit with key trading partners; (c) number of PLI beneficiaries that have achieved export and employment targets; and (d) the corrective measures that are being planned to enhance domestic value addition, Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) participation and global competitiveness of Indian manufacturing? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (SHRI JITIN PRASADA) (a)&(b): In this era of globalization, Global Value Chains have become increasingly influential in determining international trade as well as growth opportunities. Integrating with global value chains is also important for diversifying manufacturing. As India is increasingly integrating with Global Value Chains, imports are important as much as exports for successful GVC integration. Most of the goods imported from trading nations are capital goods, intermediate goods and raw materials like Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients, auto components, electronic parts and assemblies, mobile phone parts, etc which are used for making finished products which are also exported out of India. These goods are imported for meeting the demand of fast expanding sectors like electronics, pharma, telecom and power in India. The rise in import of electronic components, computer hardware and peripherals, telephone components can be attributed to digital transformation in India.In order to enhance domestic value addition and reduce dependency on imports, the Government has taken several initiatives for the benefit of manufacturing sector. ‘Make in India’ initiative was launched on 25th September, 2014 to promote India’s manufacturing sector and enhance its global competitiveness and export potential. Presently, ‘Make in India’ 2.0 focuses on 27 sectors implemented across various Ministries/Departments and State Governments. The list of sectors under Make in India 2.0 is enclosed at Annexure I. The initiatives taken by the Government have led to decline in dependency on imports in several sectors. For example, the import of mobile phones has decreased from ₹48,609 crore in 2014-15 to ₹3,710 crore in 2024-25. On the other hand, the export of mobile phones has increased substantially from ₹1,566 crore in 2014-15 to more than ₹2,05,017 crore in 2024-25. Further, for the development of semiconductors and display manufacturing ecosystem, the Government has approved Semi-con India Programme with a financial outlay of ₹76,000 crores. (c): In view of the India’s vision of making India Atmanirbhar, and continuing in line with the Make in India initiative, the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Schemes for 14 key sectors were implemented in the identified 14 sectors, namely Large Scale Electronics Manufacturing (LSEM), IT Hardware, Bulk Drugs, Medical Devices, Pharmaceuticals, Telecom & Networking Products, Food Processing, White Goods, Automobiles & Auto components, Specialty Steel, Drones & Drone Components, Textiles, Advance Chemistry Cell (ACC) Battery, and High efficient solar PV modules. As on September 2025, 806 production units have been approved under Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Schemes across 14 sectors. An investment of ₹ 2 lakh crore have been realized which has resulted in incremental production/sales of over ₹ 18.7 lakh crore, employment generation of over 12.6 lakhs, and exports surpassing ₹ 8.2 lakh crore with significant contributions from sectors such as electronics, pharmaceuticals, Automobiles and food processing. An amount of Rs. 23,945 crore have been disbursed as incentives under PLI Schemes. (d): Make in India initiatives and the PLI schemes have had considerable positive impact on the manufacturing sector, thus leading to an increase in India’s manufacturing base and diversification of product profiles. Further, these initiatives of the Government have created a cascading effect in the supply chain by strengthening upstream and downstream linkages (including increase in sourcing of raw-materials and inputs from domestic suppliers), boosting ancillary industries and developing vendor eco-systems, improving logistical infrastructure, and increasing exports and export potential and ultimately enhancing the integration of our manufacturing sector with the global value chains. Further, for the continuous overall development and promotion of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the country, the Central Government supplements the efforts of the State/UT Governments through various schemes, programmes and policyinitiatives. This inter alia includes various schemes and programmes such as Prime Minister's Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), Credit Guarantee Scheme for Micro and Small Enterprises, Micro and Small Enterprises- Cluster Development Programme (MSE-CDP), Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP), Self- Reliant India (SRI) Fund, PM Vishwakarma and MSME Champions Scheme. The other major initiatives include Start-up India, National Single Window System, GIS enabled Land Bank, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy reforms, PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan for integrated planning of multimodal infrastructure, interventions to improve Ease of Doing BUSINESS, Project Monitoring Group to remove bottlenecks in setting up of major infrastructure projects, setting up of industrial parks, rationalization of labor laws, introduction of Goods and Services Tax, reduction in the corporate tax rate, policy measures to boost domestic manufacturing through public procurement orders, Phased Manufacturing Programme (PMP) and Quality Control Orders (QCOs). Government of India is also developing various Industrial Corridor Projects as part of National Industrial Corridor Development Programme (NICDP) which is aimed at the development of greenfield industrial areas/region/nodes in India which can compete with the best manufacturing and investment destinations in the world. *******Annexure-I ANNEXURES REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) & (b) OF THE RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1643 FOR ANSWER ON 13.02.2026 Manufacturing Sectors: i. Aerospace and Defence ii. Automotive and Auto Components iii. Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices iv. Bio-Technology v. Capital Goods vi. Textile and Apparels vii. Chemicals and Petro chemicals viii. Electronics System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM) ix. Leather & Footwear x. Food Processing xi. Gems and Jewellery xii. Shipping xiii. Railways xiv. Construction xv. New and Renewable Energy Service Sectors: i. Information Technology & Information Technology enabled Services (IT &ITeS) ii. Tourism and Hospitality Services iii. Medical Value Travel iv. Transport and Logistics Services v. Accounting and Finance Services vi. Audio Visual Services vii. Legal Services viii. Communication Services ix. Construction and Related Engineering Services x. Environmental Services xi. Financial Services xii. Education Services *****