MeitY receives 52% boost in 2024-25 Budget outlay at Rs 21,936 crore

MeitY received a more than 50 per cent increase in its estimate in this year's budget

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), which is responsible for key schemes in the electronics manufacturing and semiconductor ecosystem, has received a 52 percent hike in its estimate for 2024-25, with the Union Budget allocating Rs 21,936.90 crore for this.

The revised estimate for MeitY in 2023-24 stood at Rs 14,421.25 crore. The increase in allocation is in line with the gradual increase in MeitY's budget over the years.

The majority of the increased allocation for MeitY is reflected in the expanded production-linked incentive (PLI) schemes for both semiconductors and large-scale electronics manufacturing and IT hardware.

The estimate for the 'modified scheme for setting up of compound semiconductors/silicon photonics/sensors fab/discrete semiconductors fab and semiconductor assembly, testing, marking and packaging (ATMP)/outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSAT)

facilities in India' was increased from Rs 1,428.84 crore in the revised estimate for 2023 - 2024, to Rs 4,203 crore in the Union Budget for 2024-25.

The central government increased the estimate for the 'Modified Scheme for Setting up of Semiconductor Fabs in India' from Rs 12.51 crore in revised estimate for 2023-24 to Rs 1,500 crore this year.

Notably, the government has also estimated Rs 500 crore for the Rs 10,738-crore IndiaAI program, which aims to amp up the country's artificial intelligence infrastructure, in this year's budget.

The ministry, apart from the semiconductor and hardware PLI scheme, is also responsible for public sector undertakings such as National Informatics Centre, Centre for Development of Advanced Computing, Indian Computer Emergency Response Team and so on.

The budget estimate from C-DAC has remain unchanged at Rs 270 crore; Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) was decreased from Rs 800 crore in revised estimate of FY23-24 to Rs 600 crore; and semiconductor laboratory's estimate has been increased from Rs 493 crore to Rs 540 crore.