Electronics is a champion sector for Tamil Nadu: Industries Secretary

Tamil Nadu has a lot of ambitions in the electronics sector, but still has got miles to go. There is a need to improve the component manufacturing ecosystem. The value addition has to increase, said Industries Secretary Arun Roy. Roy was speaking at the 14th edition of Source India - Electronics Supply Chain 2025: Enhancing the Electronics Supply Chain and Catalysing Value Addition on Tuesday, when he called Tamil Nadu a leader in the electronics sector. “I want the cooperation of the entire electronics sector. We also want to capitalise on the strengths of our existing industrial ecosystem. We are very good at automobiles and in electronics. So, it’s a natural fit that auto-electronics should also grow in the State. With this kind of synergy, auto-electronics is growing very well in the State,” Roy said at the event organised by Electronics Industries Association of India. He referred to the semiconductor manufacturing industry, especially the design and packaging segments, as a high-valuation sector, where Tamil Nadu wants to make a mark in the country.

Roy said the electronics industry forms a major part of Tamil Nadu’s manufacturing ecosystem. Nearly 20 per cent of India’s electronics output is from Tamil Nadu and in some sectors, the state’s lead over others is quite significant. Nearly 32 per cent of electronics consumer goods and about 45 per cent of computers and peripherals manufactured in India are manufactured in Tamil Nadu.

As much as 75 per cent of the production of some premium phone brands happens in the State. Electronics is one of the fastest-growing sectors in Tamil Nadu, he said. Tamil Nadu has aspirations to become a $1 trillion dollar economy. “For this, there are certain champion sectors which power industrial growth. Electronics is one of them,” he said.

Speaking about the growth of Tamil Nadu’s electronics industry, Roy said that from about $1.6 billion in 2020-21 it has grown to $9.56 billion in 23-24, representing a growth of nearly eight times. “This is the kind of growth the electronics industry is bringing to Tamil Nadu’s economy and the national economy.”