Twelve years ago, Make in India set out to make the country a global hub for manufacturing, design and innovation. It has become a national mission for industrial capability and self-reliance.
By June 2026, Production Linked Incentive schemes had generated investments of ₹2.6 lakh crore, production and sales of ₹23.8 lakh crore, exports of ₹15.5 lakh crore and over 14.6 lakh direct and indirect jobs. Electronics shows what focused policy delivers. Mobile-phone production has risen 2.4 times, imports have fallen by about 77 per cent, and 99.2 per cent of phones used in India are now made here.
The National Industrial Corridor Development Programme is developing smart industrial cities across seven corridors and 13 states. PM GatiShakti integrates infrastructure planning. BHAVYA will create 100 investment-ready industrial parks. Together, they underpin the next leap.
The Prime Minister has placed manufacturing first among the seven streams of power, or Saptadhara, for Viksit Bharat. He has also challenged Indian industry to place 50 companies in the Fortune Global 500 within a decade. That ambition demands deeper capabilities, more Indian intellectual property and global leadership.
Manufacturing Excellence: Build Products, Brands, and Scale
To win in demanding markets, Indian products must excel on quality, cost, speed and reliability. They also need strong design, packaging and brands that travel. India has admired companies, yet too few product brands are household names worldwide.
Zero-defect manufacturing should become India’s signature. Public procurement can reinforce this shift by recognising quality, lifecycle value and Indian innovation, while giving credible new products a pathway to scale.
Factories need ecosystems. Clusters need reliable utilities, efficient logistics, digital connectivity, testing facilities and skilled workers. MSMEs need affordable finance, technology and access to anchor-led supplier networks. Apprentices should learn on the machines that industry uses.
India now has over 2.5 lakh recognised startups, around half from Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. Manufacturing startups need patient capital, testing facilities and industry links. Together with MSMEs, they can spread industrial opportunity beyond the largest cities and deepen supply chains.
Labour-intensive sectors can create employment at scale. Advanced sectors can raise productivity, exports and strategic capability. India must pursue both.
China’s rise offers lessons. It combined infrastructure, export ambition, supplier clusters, technology absorption and relentless execution. India will follow its own democratic, diverse and inclusive path. Our execution, however, must be equally purposeful.
R&D and Innovation: Invent, Own, Commercialise
India spends under 0.8 per cent of GDP on R&D. It must rise, with far more from industry. The Anusandhan National Research Foundation and the ₹1 lakh crore Research, Development and Innovation Fund can strengthen partnerships, provide patient capital and move promising ideas from laboratory to market.
Research must tackle real industrial problems. Companies and universities should work together from the outset, with simple rules for sharing intellectual property. Success should be measured by technologies transferred, products commercialised and Indian intellectual property deployed at scale.
Industrial policy should increasingly reward outcomes: Indian technologies commercialised, critical components produced locally and globally competitive products exported. Support must remain time-bound and build capabilities that endure after incentives end.
Ease of Doing Business: Compete Without Friction
The government has digitised approvals, decriminalised minor offences and created the National Single Window System. India’s World Bank Logistics Performance Index rank improved from 54th in 2014 to 38th in 2023.
Across states and districts, a single window must operate as one system, with connected backends and visible timelines. Approvals should be risk-based and time-bound. Deemed approvals must work in practice. Investors need one accountable point of contact across departments. Competitive power, land, labour and logistics can decide whether an Indian factory wins an export order.
Trade and Supply Chains: Export More, Depend Less
India has concluded nine trade agreements in recent years, largely with advanced markets. The UK and European Union agreements open two of the largest opportunities. By 2027, preferential access could reach markets representing nearly one-third of global consumption.
Market access must become market share. Industry needs compliance capability, export finance and distribution networks. It must master tariffs, standards and rules of origin, then move quickly.
Atmanirbhar Bharat demands resilience, not isolation. India should identify critical dependencies, build domestic capacity where viable and diversify other sources. Trusted partnerships, alternative logistics routes and strategic redundancy are essential where disruption could halt production.
Industry must invest boldly, innovate faster and build globally competitive Indian products and brands. Achieving Viksit Bharat by 2047 requires these four priorities to advance together. India must deepen manufacturing capability, commercialise innovation, remove business friction and secure its place in global value chains. Only then can it become a nation known for world-class products, original technologies and globally trusted brands.
The writer is President, FICCI and Vice Chairman, RPG Group.
Disclaimer: The views expressed are the author’s own and do not reflect the official policy or position of Financial Express.