India Clears Rs 5,532 Crore in First Projects Under $2.7 Billion Electronics Component Plan

Seven projects aim to bring more of the electronics supply chain home

India has approved its first seven projects under the Electronics Component Manufacturing Scheme (ECMS), clearing Rs 5,532 crore in investment, about $626 million, for factories making printed circuit boards, camera modules, copper clad laminates and polypropylene film. Five projects will be in Tamil Nadu, with one each in Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

The approvals mark an effort to move more of the work behind electronic devices into India. The country has grown rapidly as a place to assemble phones and other products, but many of the parts that go inside them still arrive from overseas, especially East Asia. The $2.7 billion scheme seeks to build those components at home and keep a larger share of manufacturing value within the country.

The government projects that the first seven units will generate output worth Rs 44,406 crore and create 5,195 direct jobs. About 60 percent of production is expected to go to export markets. Officials expect the plants to supply roughly 20 percent of domestic demand for high density printed circuit boards, about 15 percent for camera module subassemblies, and all of the current requirement for copper clad laminates and polypropylene film.

The scale of the import challenge is substantial. In the financial year ended March 2025, India imported $36.8 billion in electronic components. Nearly 40 percent came from China, while more than 16 percent came through Hong Kong. Together, those two channels accounted for more than half of component imports.

Electronics exports reached $38.56 billion in the same financial year, making electronics India's third largest export category. Those exports expanded eightfold over a decade. The policy challenge is to turn that growth in finished products into demand for a deeper network of Indian suppliers, while reducing exposure to changes in trade controls, shipping costs and access to critical materials.

How the six year incentive scheme works

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology designed ECMS with a budgeted outlay of Rs 22,919 crore. It is a six year incentive program with a setup window of one year, intended to attract large investments from Indian and global companies and close technology gaps in components that India still imports.

ECMS offers three incentive routes. A turnover linked incentive rewards qualifying sales, a capital expenditure linked incentive supports investment in facilities and equipment, and a hybrid route combines the two. Companies must meet measurable requirements for investment, sales and employment before receiving each tranche of support.

Part of the payout depends on job creation. Total incentive support is capped at half of a project's investment, keeping companies responsible for a substantial share of the cost. Payments begin only after production starts, so firms must finance construction and the early stages of operations before incentive money arrives.

The scheme connects financial support with commitments on output, quality and employment. It also encourages backward integration, meaning that a manufacturer makes or sources more of the materials needed for its own products within India. Certain products, including high density interconnect boards and lithium ion materials, can qualify for higher incentive rates when critical inputs are made locally.

The targeted products include bare printed circuit boards, boards with multiple layers, high density interconnect boards, camera modules, electromechanical parts, lithium ion battery components, copper clad laminates and polypropylene film used in capacitors. Support also extends to manufacturers of capital equipment, the machines used to make components, a category left out of earlier programs.

Global quality practices are part of the policy's design. Six Sigma methods help factories reduce errors and make production more consistent, while UL certification addresses product safety. The government wants Indian suppliers to meet international customer requirements and compete on productivity and quality without depending on tariff barriers.

Where the first investments will go

Tamil Nadu has secured five of the seven projects, with new facilities planned around Chennai, Thoothukudi and Hosur. These locations place component makers near established phone and electronics assembly clusters and major ports. The state's existing manufacturing belt around Chennai and Sriperumbudur stands to gain a more extensive local supply base.

Kaynes Circuits accounts for four projects with investment of about Rs 3,280 crore. Its plants will make printed circuit boards with multiple layers, high density interconnect boards, copper clad laminates and camera module subassemblies. Bringing several related products into the same investment program links board manufacturing with the materials and modules needed by electronics customers.

Ascent Circuits, based in Hosur and part of the Amber Group, plans a large printed circuit board line with investment of Rs 991 crore. Hosur, about an hour from Bengaluru, has already attracted component manufacturers serving the automotive and electronics industries.

Syrma Strategic Electronics will invest Rs 765 crore in a printed circuit board unit in Andhra Pradesh. SRF will spend roughly Rs 496 crore in Madhya Pradesh to manufacture polypropylene film for capacitors, marking its entry into electronic materials.

The Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh projects add manufacturing locations outside the established clusters, spreading investment across more regions and drawing on new labor pools. Authorities have issued approval letters quickly to keep projects on schedule. Letters for the first seven projects were issued within weeks, and companies face tight construction schedules because incentive payments depend on starting production.

Why circuit boards and their materials matter

A printed circuit board, usually called a PCB, holds and connects the chips, memory, power circuits and sensors that make an electronic product work. Phones, servers, cars and aircraft systems all depend on these boards. A country can assemble a finished device while still importing the board that connects its most important parts.

High density interconnect, or HDI, boards fit many layers of copper connections into a small space. Producing them requires tight tolerances, clean rooms, costly machinery and disciplined control of each manufacturing step. Reliable local board production helps manufacturers manage quality, delivery times and the bill of materials, the list of parts and materials required to make a product.

Copper clad laminates are the foundation on which circuit boards are built. They combine copper foil and insulating resin on a glass fiber base. When manufacturers import these laminates, they face shipping delays, currency risk and limits on available thicknesses that can affect production yield, the share of output that meets the required standard.

Making laminates near PCB factories can lower logistics costs and allow engineers to design boards and materials together for better performance. The first approvals therefore support both the finished board and an important input used to manufacture it.

Officials expect the approved units to cover all of India's current requirement for copper clad laminates, alongside about one fifth of domestic demand for high density boards. These are projections for the plants once they are operating. Their contribution will depend on factories reaching the planned scale and meeting customer requirements.

Camera modules and capacitor film broaden the plan

Camera modules combine image sensors, lenses, voice coil motors for autofocus and image processing. They are complex assemblies rather than a single simple part. Their quality matters in smartphone markets where buyers place a high value on camera performance.

Camera modules are also among the costlier items in a smartphone's bill of materials. Producing them in India can reduce component import bills and encourage design work in optics, mechatronics and imaging algorithms. Mechatronics brings mechanical systems and electronics together, while imaging algorithms process the information captured by a camera.

The first approved camera module capacity is expected to meet about 15 percent of domestic demand. Kaynes' investment puts this activity alongside its planned circuit board and laminate operations.

Polypropylene film serves a different purpose. It is a thin insulating material used inside capacitors, which are components in power supplies for products ranging from laptops and medical devices to electric vehicles. Local production can therefore support the energy and automotive sectors as well as electronics manufacturers.

SRF's Madhya Pradesh project is part of the planned capacity that officials expect to meet all of India's current need for this film. Together, the film and laminate projects give ECMS a role in materials production, extending the program beyond the assembly of components.

Exports are growing, but imported parts remain central

India's $38.56 billion in electronics exports and $36.8 billion in component imports in the financial year ended March 2025 show the size of both sides of its manufacturing expansion. Finished products are reaching overseas buyers in greater numbers, while factories continue to rely heavily on imported inputs.

China supplied nearly 40 percent of component imports, and more than 16 percent came through Hong Kong. This concentration exposes manufacturers to changes in export rules, geopolitical pressure and shipping costs. ECMS is intended to help secure a steadier supply of inputs as the electronics industry grows.

Multinational companies are already spreading production across more countries. Apple shipments made in India increased 42 percent to $12.8 billion in 2024. In the quarter ended September 2025, India surpassed China as the largest smartphone exporter to the United States, supported by a sharp rise in output.

The government says India is now the world's second largest mobile phone manufacturer. That position creates an opportunity for component makers to supply nearby assembly plants, while also exporting from the same facilities.

About 60 percent of output from the first seven ECMS projects is planned for export. Serving both Indian factories and overseas customers gives the plants a route to larger production volumes, better use of equipment and lower costs. The scheme aims to anchor more of the value chain in India rather than relying on growth in final assembly alone.

How ECMS fits with earlier manufacturing policies

Production linked incentive programs for mobile phones, IT hardware and telecom equipment have sought to increase the scale of finished goods manufacturing. ECMS focuses on the components, subassemblies and production equipment behind those goods.

The National Policy on Electronics 2019 and the Electronics Manufacturing Clusters program support the land, power and logistics needed by factories. The Electronics Development Fund supplies risk capital for local design businesses. Each addresses a different part of the work required to build an electronics industry.

The Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronic Components and Semiconductors offered a capital subsidy of 25 percent for a broad range of parts. ECMS updates that incentive approach, directs support toward priority components and adds a route for manufacturers of capital equipment.

The Semicon India program supports semiconductor fabrication facilities, along with assembly and testing plants. Projects involving Micron, Tata Electronics and the HCL Foxconn venture are building packaging, assembly and display capacity. Global component companies such as Murata are also expanding their presence in India.

Policymakers want manufacturing to be supported by local design work. India already has a large pool of chip designers and produces more than two million graduates in science, technology, engineering and mathematics each year. Turning that talent into factory capability also requires training for specific production processes.

The value addition target reaches beyond new factories

Many officials cite a goal of raising domestic value addition in electronics to roughly one third within five years. Value addition means the share of a product's value created through work and inputs within India, rather than through parts bought from abroad.

More assembly plants alone will not deliver that target. Manufacturers also need suppliers of chemicals, gases, laminates and films, along with engineers who can design products, control production processes and secure certification for demanding customers.

The first ECMS approvals address several of those needs together. Circuit boards need laminates, camera modules require precision assembly, and capacitor film brings a materials producer into the electronics supply chain. Higher incentives for local inputs encourage companies to deepen those connections.

The broader ECMS program and related schemes aim to create more than 90,000 direct jobs, alongside substantial indirect employment in logistics, maintenance and tools. The initial seven projects account for 5,195 expected direct roles.

Industry bodies and the Electronics Sector Skills Council of India are preparing targeted training for factory work. Curricula cover PCB fabrication, optical assembly and equipment maintenance so that local workers can fill positions requiring more specialized skills.

Materials, quality and financing will test delivery

PCB factories require copper foil, glass fiber cloth, epoxy resins, photoresists and specialty chemicals. Many of these inputs are still imported. Building domestic supply will require further investment from chemical and materials businesses, followed by lengthy qualification processes to show that their products meet manufacturers' specifications.

Copper and energy price swings can put pressure on factory margins. Local material production can shorten supply routes, but manufacturers still need to manage input costs and maintain consistent output.

HDI production requires precise drilling, laser direct imaging and closely controlled lamination. Camera module assembly needs clean environments, accurate optical alignment and thorough testing. Early production can contain defects while teams learn to operate these complex processes reliably.

Partnerships with global technology providers can help factories develop that know how. ECMS signals openness to such partnerships while tying support to measurable results. Customers will also require compliance with international standards, including UL safety requirements, IPC standards for circuit boards and rigorous reliability testing.

Some executives worry about hidden barriers in export markets. The government's broader message is that Indian factories must compete through quality, delivery and cost rather than protection. Certification and consistent production are therefore central to winning international business.

Financing presents another test. Circuit board and materials plants need large investments and time to reach steady output. Since incentives begin after production starts, companies need working capital to bridge construction and the early production period.

States also have practical responsibilities. Reliable power, water and waste treatment are needed to keep manufacturing lines stable. Logistics improvements must allow components to move quickly between suppliers, assembly factories and export ports.

Applications, approvals and the next milestones

ECMS has received 249 applications proposing investment of about Rs 1.15 lakh crore. The first seven approvals represent an initial batch within that larger pipeline. Further approvals are expected in batches before 2027.

The first application window for most component categories closed on September 30, 2025, while the window for capital equipment remains open. As of October 29, the approvals set out planned investment, output and employment. No production start dates were given for the seven projects.

The key dates and milestones place the approvals within a wider expansion of electronics manufacturing:

• 2024: Apple shipments made in India rose 42 percent to $12.8 billion.
• March 2025: The financial year ended with electronics exports of $38.56 billion and component imports of $36.8 billion.
• September 30, 2025: The first application window closed for most ECMS component categories.
• Quarter ended September 2025: India surpassed China as the leading smartphone exporter to the United States.
• October 29, 2025: The first seven ECMS projects had received approval, covering Rs 5,532 crore in investment.
• Before 2027: Further batches of project approvals are expected.

Early shipments of copper clad laminates and polypropylene film will be useful milestones for the effort to build domestic material supplies. Construction progress, production starts and customer qualification will show how quickly approved investments turn into usable factory capacity.

India is also seeking a larger share of global electronics exports by 2030, potentially reaching 4 to 5 percent if current momentum continues. The first component projects connect that export ambition with the effort to retain more manufacturing value at home.

The Bottom Line

• India has approved seven projects worth Rs 5,532 crore under its $2.7 billion Electronics Component Manufacturing Scheme.
• Five projects are in Tamil Nadu, with one each in Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
• Kaynes Circuits, Ascent Circuits, Syrma Strategic Electronics and SRF will make circuit boards, camera modules, laminates and capacitor film.
• The projects are expected to create 5,195 direct jobs and generate output worth Rs 44,406 crore, with about 60 percent intended for export.
• Planned capacity covers about 20 percent of domestic demand for high density boards, 15 percent for camera modules and all current demand for copper clad laminates and polypropylene film.
• ECMS has an outlay of Rs 22,919 crore, runs for six years with a setup window of one year, and caps total incentives at 50 percent of investment.
• The scheme has received 249 applications proposing about Rs 1.15 lakh crore in investment. More approvals are expected before 2027.
• Production, quality certification, financing and reliable supplies of materials will determine how quickly the approved factories can serve customers.