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NITI Aayog has released 'Key Sectors to Position India as a Global Manufacturing Hub', analysing four sectors — chemicals, textiles, telecom and networking equipment, and solar photovoltaic manufacturing — with reports on eight more sectors to follow.
The study runs in four phases: shortlisting sectors by relative attractiveness, a three-pronged assessment of market potential, competitiveness and strategic relevance, international benchmarking, and actionable recommendations.
Textiles contribute about 2% of national GDP, 11% of manufacturing gross value added and 9% of merchandise exports, employ more than 45 million people and made India the sixth-largest textile exporter with US$ 37.7 billion of exports in fiscal 2025.
India is the world's second-largest telecom market with over 1.2 billion subscribers, about 85% telecom penetration and nearly 75% internet usage; the National Telecom Policy 2025 targets doubling the sector's GDP contribution and exports and creating one million jobs by 2030.
India had 106 GW of installed solar capacity by March 2025 and needs about 174 GW more to reach the 2030 target of 280 GW; the domestic PV market of ₹32,400 crore is projected to grow at 17-20% CAGR to fiscal 2030.
| Sector | India's position | Priorities identified |
|---|---|---|
| Chemicals | Led by petrochemicals and organic chemicals, specialty chemicals and inorganic chemicals | Expand downstream production, improve feedstock utilisation, use FTAs strategically to cut import dependence |
| Textiles | 6th-largest exporter; 4.1% of global textile and apparel exports; US$ 37.7 billion exported in FY2025 | Raw material availability, infrastructure-led scale, trade integration, skilling, technical textiles, MMF-based and sustainable products |
| Telecom and networking equipment | 2nd-largest telecom market; 1.2 billion-plus subscribers | Deepen localisation and component manufacturing, joint ventures and technology transfer, industrial clusters, testing and certification |
| Solar PV | 106 GW installed by March 2025 against a 2030 target of 280 GW | Strengthen upstream capability, technology partnerships, R&D and performance-linked support, integrated clean-tech clusters, industry-led skilling |
Reward incremental domestic production with incentives to build scale in chosen manufacturing sectors
Key: Announced in 2021 for 14 sectors with an outlay of ₹1.97 lakh crore, covering large-scale electronics, IT hardware, telecom and networking products, pharmaceuticals, bulk drugs, medical devices, food processing, white goods, drones, speciality steel, textile products, automobiles and auto components — three of the four sectors in this report have their own PLI.
Create integrated large-scale textile manufacturing infrastructure with spinning, weaving, processing and garmenting at one site
Key: Seven Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel parks approved in 2021 with a total outlay of ₹4,445 crore over five years, at sites in Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra.
Ensure that solar modules used in Indian projects meet quality standards and support domestic manufacturing
Key: Maintained by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, it lists eligible models and manufacturers of solar modules complying with BIS standards — the principal non-tariff instrument shaping the domestic solar PV market this report analyses.
Advance Make in India across small, medium and large industries
Key: Announced in the Union Budget 2025-26 with five focus areas — ease and cost of doing business, a future-ready workforce, a vibrant MSME sector, availability of technology, and quality products.
Double the telecom sector's contribution to GDP and its exports by 2030
Key: Also targets one million new jobs and a significant increase in investment and R&D expenditure, against a base of more than 1.2 billion subscribers and about 85% telecom penetration.
The Government of India's policy think tank, which produces sectoral studies such as this one; it has no allocative funding powers, so its reports work through recommendation rather than sanction
Two countries can export the same dollar value of solar modules while one imports nearly all the cells, wafers and polysilicon and the other makes them. The first captures assembly margins and remains exposed to any supply disruption upstream; the second captures far more of the value and controls its own inputs. That is why the report's assessment criteria run beyond market size to infrastructure readiness, policy support, raw material availability, technology readiness, employment potential and India's current position in the value chain — and why its recommendations for each sector point upstream: downstream production and feedstock utilisation in chemicals, component manufacturing and localisation in telecom, upstream capability in solar, and raw material availability in textiles. The same logic explains the emphasis on technology partnerships, joint ventures and technology transfer across three of the four sectors: moving up a value chain usually requires acquiring process knowledge that incentives alone cannot buy.
Simple Analogy: A bakery that imports dough and only bakes it has a large turnover and a thin margin; owning the mill changes both the economics and the vulnerability.
The 280 GW solar target for 2030 links this report to India's non-fossil capacity commitments under its NDC — the manufacturing question is the supply side of the deployment question.
Telecom and networking equipment sits adjacent to the semiconductor programme; localisation of components is the same problem in both, one step apart in the chain.
Textiles employing over 45 million and being the second-largest employer after agriculture is the standard argument for prioritising labour-intensive manufacturing over capital-intensive sectors.
The chemicals recommendation to make strategic use of FTAs connects industrial policy to trade negotiation — tariff structures decide whether downstream investment is viable.
GS Paper 3 > Indian Economy: Industrial Policy, Growth and Employment
General Awareness > Economy and Reports
General Awareness > Reports and Indices, Industrial Sectors
Which of the following activities constitute real sector in the economy? 1. Farmers harvesting their crops 2. Textile mills converting raw cotton into fabrics 3. A commercial bank lending money to a trading company 4. A corporate body issuing Rupee Denominated Bonds overseas Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Answer: 1 and 2 only
Which of the following is NOT an example of an industrial district in India?
Answer: Darjeeling-Jalpaiguri region
Identify the group of districts that are NOT an example of industrial districts of India.
Answer: Darjeeling-Jalpaiguri region
Which of the following statements about light industries is correct?
Answer: Use light materials to make consumer goods
Which of the following correctly highlights a unique feature of India's textile industry?
Answer: It is self-reliant across the full value chain
NITI Aayog reports and manufacturing policy appear regularly in Prelims and are standing GS3 Mains material
Output less intermediate consumption; textiles account for about 11% of manufacturing GVA.
Where a country's activity sits between raw material and finished product — the report's central assessment criterion.
Man-made fibre textiles, identified as a growth priority alongside technical and sustainable textiles.
Textiles made for functional rather than aesthetic purposes — in construction, agriculture, medicine and protection — flagged as a value-addition opportunity.
Compound annual growth rate; India's domestic PV market is projected to grow at 17-20% CAGR between fiscal 2023 and fiscal 2030.