India’s innovation ecosystem has shown strong and steady progress over the past few years, with the country climbing to 38th position in the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2025 from 66th in 2019, according to the Economic Survey 2025-26 tabled in Parliament today by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday. 

The Survey highlights how government initiatives in manufacturing, research, startups and technology have helped India emerge as a growing global hub for innovation and industrial development.

The Economic Survey noted that the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme has played a major role in boosting domestic manufacturing, especially in the smartphone sector.

Many global mobile phone companies have shifted their production to India, turning the country into an important manufacturing centre.

Till September 2025, actual investments under the PLI scheme crossed Rs 2 lakh crore, leading to additional production and sales of over Rs 18.70 lakh crore.

The scheme has also generated employment for more than 12.60 lakh people, both directly and indirectly.

The Economic Survey highlighted that India now leads among lower middle-income countries in innovation and ranks first in the Central and Southern Asia region.

Cities such as Bengaluru, Delhi and Mumbai are among the world’s top 50 innovation-intensive clusters. Overall innovation output in the country has also increased significantly.

India has also become an important global player in intellectual property. In 2024, the country ranked fourth in trademark filings, sixth in patents and seventh in industrial designs worldwide.

The Economic Survey also pointed to strong progress in the semiconductor sector. As of August 2025, ten semiconductor manufacturing and packaging projects have been approved across six states, with a total investment of around Rs 1.60 lakh crore.

Under the India Semiconductor Mission and the Semicon India programme, the government is building a complete domestic semiconductor ecosystem, as per the Survey.