India removes import duty on select smartphone and electronics parts

India has scrapped import duties on a select range of smartphone components and electronics parts, the Indian Express reported, in a targeted policy move designed to lower manufacturing costs for companies producing devices within the country. The duty removal applies to specific parts used in the assembly of smartphones and other consumer electronics, reducing the landed cost of inputs that Indian factories currently source from overseas suppliers, predominantly in China, South Korea, and Taiwan.

The decision aligns with the government's broader industrial strategy of building India into a credible alternative to China as a global electronics manufacturing base. Programmes like the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme have already drawn major players including Apple's contract manufacturers and Samsung to scale up India operations. Removing input duties is seen as a complementary step — addressing a longstanding concern from manufacturers that high component tariffs were eating into the incentive benefits.

Industry bodies and electronics manufacturers had lobbied for tariff relief on components that are not yet produced at scale domestically, arguing that forcing companies to pay duties on unavoidable imports was counterproductive. The government appears to have responded with a calibrated set of exemptions, targeting parts where domestic substitution is limited in the near term.

For consumers, the impact could manifest gradually as reduced input costs allow manufacturers to either lower retail prices or improve margins and reinvest in local capacity. For India's electronics export ambitions — particularly in mobile phones, which have become one of the country's fastest-growing export categories — the move strengthens the foundation for further scale-up.