Telecom Industry Urges Extended Incentives for Local Manufacturing in India

The telecom industry is urging the Indian government to extend the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for an additional five years as industry leaders met at the India Mobile Congress 2025. The extension aims to increase value addition in domestically produced telecom equipment and enhance competitiveness globally.

During a discussion chaired by telecom minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, key figures like Nokia India country manager Tarun Chhabra highlighted the need for better support of electronic components manufactured within the country. They stressed the significance of local semiconductor facilities and the need for industry collaboration to make these components more widely available in India.

Industry experts including Ericsson's Head of Market Area Southeast Asia, Oceania, and India, Andres Vicente, and Zetwerk's President for Electronics, Josh Foulger, pointed out that extending the telecom PLI scheme is crucial for India to secure a significant share in the 6G ecosystem. Meanwhile, Naveen Yandru from Axiro highlighted the challenge of achieving scale compared to global giants.