India manufactured about 110 million mobile phones in 2015-16

BPO industry should move to small towns where overhead costs are less compared to big cities.

| Published: Thursday, April 26, 2018, 23:40 [IST]

Electronics and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Thursday that Indian mobile manufacturing industry is expected to touch Rs 132,000 crore by the end of 2018.

India manufactured about 110 million mobile phones in 2015-16 as compared to 60 million in 2014-15 showing a growth of over 90 percent. In value terms, India's mobile manufacturing industry produced mobile phones worth Rs 54,000 crore in FY15-16 compared to Rs 18,900 crore in FY14-15. The same reached Rs 94,000 crore by end of 2017 he said at an event organized by MeitY, ASSOCHAM, and Ericsson.

In terms of volume, in 2014 India produced 5 core mobile phone made locally in India which reached to 15 crores in 2015-16. In 2017 the Indian mobile manufacturing industry produced 22 million mobile phones. 'The industry would produce 50 million mobile phones by 2020,' said the minister.

On electronics manufacturing units he informed that within three years, the industry added 120 such units. Two-third of these are mobile manufacturing units and there 54 such units in Noida alone. On top of that these industries employ 5 lakh people," he added.

Prasad further said that India has the world's third-largest start-up community after US and England. He said that his ministry is working in mission mode to make India's digital sector $1 trillion economy in next five years and has potential to create 50 lakh to 70 lakh new jobs.

He also said that BPO industry should move to small towns where overhead costs are less compared to big cities. About 48,000 seats have been planned with distribution across states and UTs based on population percentage.

It excluded metro cities like Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, National Capital Region, Pune and North Eastern states. He further said, about 86 new BPOs operating in 27 states excluding digitally rich areas. BPO centers have already come up in Patna and Muzaffarpur, while such centers would soon be opened in smaller cities like Ghazipur, Jahanabad and Gaya etc, he said.

'The government will give the grant of Rs. 5 crores to start-ups doing innovation in the field of cybersecurity and healthcare", said Prasad.

The Minister also mentioned the increasing adoption of the Umang (Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance) app, Bharat Interface for Money (BHIM) app that enables secure cashless payments through mobile phones.