Enthused By Govt's PLI Scheme, Smartphone Makers Set To Hire 50,000 Direct Employees By March 2021

In a major employment booster, smartphone makers are set to hire as many as 50,000 direct employees by March 2021 with Government's production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme playing a catalyst for domestic and international players in the sector to set up and grow manufacturing in India, reports Economic Times.

Domestic manufacturers which have been selected under the PLI scheme, namely, Lava International, Dixon technologies, UTL Neolyncs, Optiemus Electronics and Micromax are estimated to create as many as 20,000 of these new jobs by the end of December 2020 itself.

The industry already provides employment to around seven lakh people across the country.

As per the president of the industry body India Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA) Pankaj Mohindroo, last year, the industry had hired only about 15,000 people given the PLI policy push was still being drafted and the markets had been quiet. Thus, the likely creation of 50,000 new jobs over last year's 15,000 comes as a significant development.

It should be noted that apart from the domestic players aforementioned, the international industry majors which have been selected under PLI scheme include Samsung, Foxconn units Hon Hai and Rising Star, Wistron and Pegatron.