{"id":14176,"date":"2026-05-27T07:39:02","date_gmt":"2026-05-27T07:39:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lemonn.co.in\/blog\/glossary\/pli-scheme\/"},"modified":"2026-05-27T07:39:02","modified_gmt":"2026-05-27T07:39:02","slug":"pli-scheme","status":"publish","type":"glossary","link":"https:\/\/lemonn.co.in\/blog\/glossary\/pli-scheme\/","title":{"rendered":"PLI Scheme"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme is a Government of India initiative that provides financial incentives to companies based on their incremental sales from products manufactured in India. Launched in 2020-21, the scheme spans 14 <a class=\"glossaryLink\" href=\"https:\/\/lemonn.co.in\/blog\/glossary\/sector\/\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]' tabindex=\"0\" role=\"link\">sector<\/a>s and aims to make Indian manufacturing globally competitive, reduce import dependence, and attract both domestic and foreign investment.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"what-is-the-pli-scheme\">What Is the <a class=\"glossaryLink\" href=\"https:\/\/lemonn.co.in\/blog\/glossary\/pli-scheme\/\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]' tabindex=\"0\" role=\"link\">PLI Scheme<\/a>?<\/h2>\n<p>PLI gives manufacturers a percentage of their incremental sales as a direct financial incentive for a defined period, typically 4 to 6 years. The incentive is paid only if the company achieves the production and sales targets set under the scheme. This encourages companies to scale up and invest in capacity expansion.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"sectors-covered\">Sectors Covered<\/h2>\n<p>The PLI scheme covers 14 key sectors:<br>\n&#x2013; Mobile phones and electronic components<br>\n&#x2013; Pharmaceutical drugs<br>\n&#x2013; Medical devices<br>\n&#x2013; Telecom and networking products<br>\n&#x2013; White goods (ACs, LED lights)<br>\n&#x2013; Food processing<br>\n&#x2013; Automobiles and auto components<br>\n&#x2013; Advanced chemistry cell batteries<br>\n&#x2013; Solar photovoltaic modules<br>\n&#x2013; Textiles<br>\n&#x2013; Specialty steel<br>\n&#x2013; Drones<br>\n&#x2013; Semiconductors<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"how-pli-works\">How PLI Works<\/h2>\n<p>A company manufacturing smartphones commits to an investment plan. If it achieves incremental sales of Rs 100 crore above the base year, the government pays an incentive of, say, 5% of that increment (Rs 5 crore). The incentive is paid annually based on achieved sales, creating a strong financial motivation to scale.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"key-objectives\">Key Objectives<\/h2>\n<p>&#x2013; Boost domestic manufacturing and create employment<br>\n&#x2013; Develop global-scale manufacturing in strategic sectors<br>\n&#x2013; Reduce dependence on imports (especially from China) for critical goods<br>\n&#x2013; Attract FDI and expand India&#x2019;s export capacity<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"impact-so-far\">Impact So Far<\/h2>\n<p>&#x2013; India&#x2019;s mobile phone production increased from Rs 18,900 crore in 2014 to over Rs 4.1 lakh crore in 2023<br>\n&#x2013; Apple and Samsung expanded their manufacturing presence significantly in India under PLI<br>\n&#x2013; PLI for semiconductors is aimed at making India a chip manufacturing destination<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"practical-example\">Practical Example<\/h2>\n<p>A pharmaceutical company applies under the PLI scheme for advanced API (active pharmaceutical ingredient) production. It receives 10% to 20% incentive on incremental sales for 6 years. The incentive helps offset high setup costs and makes Indian API production cost-competitive with Chinese imports, reducing India&#x2019;s dependence on Chinese APIs.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"key-takeaways\">Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<p>&#x2013; PLI provides financial incentives as a percentage of incremental sales above a base year<br>\n&#x2013; Covers 14 sectors including mobile phones, pharmaceuticals, automobiles, and solar modules<br>\n&#x2013; Incentivises large-scale manufacturing investment and export-oriented production<br>\n&#x2013; India&#x2019;s smartphone manufacturing growth is one of the most successful PLI outcomes<br>\n&#x2013; PLI complements the <a class=\"glossaryLink\" href=\"https:\/\/lemonn.co.in\/blog\/glossary\/make-in-india\/\" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{\"attribute\":\"data-cmtooltip\", \"format\":\"html\"}]' tabindex=\"0\" role=\"link\">Make in India<\/a> initiative by providing direct financial motivation to invest in India<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme is a Government of India initiative that provides financial incentives to companies based on their incremental sales from products manufactured in India. Launched in 2020-21, the scheme spans 14 sectors and aims to make Indian manufacturing globally competitive, reduce import dependence, and attract both domestic and foreign investment. What [&#x2026;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-14176","glossary","type-glossary","status-publish","hentry"],"blocksy_meta":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":false,"thumbnail":false,"medium":false,"medium_large":false,"large":false,"1536x1536":false,"2048x2048":false,"web-stories-poster-portrait":false,"web-stories-publisher-logo":false,"web-stories-thumbnail":false},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Team Lemonn","author_link":"https:\/\/lemonn.co.in\/blog\/author\/ashu\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme is a Government of India initiative that provides financial incentives to companies based on their incremental sales from products manufactured in India. Launched in 2020-21, the scheme spans 14 sectors and aims to make Indian manufacturing globally competitive, reduce import dependence, and attract both domestic and foreign investment. What&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lemonn.co.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/glossary\/14176","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lemonn.co.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/glossary"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lemonn.co.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/glossary"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lemonn.co.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lemonn.co.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/glossary\/14176\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lemonn.co.in\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14176"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}