Indian Mobile Industry Sees Big Growth: 99.2% Of Phones Sold Are 'Made In India'

Ashwini Vaishnaw the Minister of Electronics and Information Technology, shared a major achievement of India’s mobile industry. Vaishnaw said on X, formerly known as Twitter, that India’s mobile industry has grown by 20% in just nine years.

“Met Mobile industry to review progress. Industry has grown 20 times in 9 years. 2014: 78% import dependent 2023: 99.2% of all mobiles sold in India are ‘Made In India,’” Ashwini Vaishanaw said.

This notably came after he met some of the top stakeholders in the industry to discuss the state of mobiles in India.

Based on the minister’s remarks, India was import-dependent in 2014, with 78% of total mobile devices being imported into the country, but that figure has gradually declined. Now, it is claimed that 99.2% of the mobile phone units being sold in India are now ‘Made in India,’ which signals a positive shift in how the industry has shaped over the last decade or so.

Most manufacturers, including Chinese companies like BBK-owned Oppo, Vivo, OnePlus, or Xiaomi, have been making and assembling smartphones in India.

Also, it can’t be forgotten that iPhones, too, are now being assembled in India—across Foxconn’s Tamil Nadu plant, and several others including Winstron and Pegatron.

Notably, this year, ‘Assembled In India’ iPhones 15 models were available to buy for Indian customers right on the launch date itself.

Furthermore, Tata group recently finalized its acquisition of Winstron’s India operations, and it aims to start manufacturing iPhones in a span of about two and a half years. “Within just two and a half years, Tata Companies will now start making iPhones from India for domestic and global markets,” Rajeev Chandrasekhar, India’s Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, said lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s PLI scheme in October last month. “Congratulations to the Tata team for taking over Wistron operations,” he added.

Apple has also been focusing a lot more on the Indian market, and now, there are two official Apple stores in the country as well—Apple BKC in Mumbai and Apple Saket in New Delhi.