New Delhi— Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday called for a stronger focus on building export competitiveness in key sectors where India holds a global advantage. Speaking at a review meeting on the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, Goyal urged stakeholders to address sector-specific challenges and drive long-term export growth.
Goyal emphasized the importance of self-reliance in sectors covered under the PLI initiative, while calling on ministries to prioritize the development of quality skilled manpower over quantity. He also highlighted the need to resolve infrastructure bottlenecks in collaboration with the National Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (NICDC) and to chart a clear five-year roadmap for both investment and disbursement under the scheme.
Currently, the PLI scheme is in various stages of implementation across 14 strategic sectors. As of March 2025, the scheme has attracted investments worth ₹1.76 lakh crore, generating over ₹16.5 lakh crore in production and sales, and creating more than 12 lakh jobs (both direct and indirect).
The government has disbursed a cumulative ₹21,534 crore in incentives across 12 sectors, including large-scale electronics manufacturing, IT hardware, bulk drugs, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, telecom and networking products, food processing, white goods, automobiles and auto components, specialty steel, textiles, and drones.
The impact of the PLI scheme has been especially notable in sectors like pharmaceuticals, where cumulative sales reached ₹2.66 lakh crore, including ₹1.70 lakh crore in exports during the first three years. For FY 2024–25 alone, export sales of eligible pharma products totaled ₹0.67 lakh crore—representing roughly 27% of India’s total pharma exports during the period.
In a sign of growing innovation, 40% of total investments—approximately ₹15,102 crore—have been directed toward research and development by approved companies.
The PLI scheme for bulk drugs has also helped transform India from a net importer to a net exporter, with outbound shipments of ₹2,280 crore in FY 2024–25 compared to imports of ₹1,930 crore in FY 2021–22.
The food processing sector under the PLI scheme has reported ₹9,032 crore in investments, leading to production and sales worth ₹3.8 lakh crore and the creation of over 3.4 lakh jobs.
Meanwhile, Indian exports of man-made fiber (MMF) textiles rose to $6 billion in FY 2024–25, up from $5.7 billion the previous year. Exports of technical textiles reached $3.36 billion, compared to $2.99 billion in FY 2023–24.
Goyal concluded by underscoring the long-term potential of the PLI scheme to strengthen India’s position as a global manufacturing and export hub. (Source: IANS)
