Indigenous electronic product design, development must for leveraging local chip production: IESA

Bengaluru, Feb 27 (PTI) Design and development of indigenous finished electronic products is essential to leverage the local semiconductor ecosystem, a top official of chip industry body IESA said on Friday.

India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA) President Ashok Chandak told PTI that the organisation has identified top 25 priority products that are strategic for the nation and it will start issuing reference designs within six to nine months to enable their local development and production.

"It is of utmost importance that Indian industry and entrepreneurs rise to the occasion and decisively move towards building India as a true product nation. For decades, we have demonstrated strength in services and design. The next frontier is ownership – of products, IP, manufacturing, and global markets," Chandak said.

He was speaking on the sidelines of IESA Vision Summit 2026.

Chandak said that products designed overseas include most of the components and semiconductors produced in foreign countries.

"When we start local design then most of the bill of materials which means the components of the product can be sourced locally," Chandak said.

He said the transition will not be easy as product development demands long-term commitment, patient capital, deep R&D, design excellence, supply chain integration, and global competitiveness.

"But this is the path forward if India is to create sustainable value, technological sovereignty, and large-scale employment. IESA has identified a focused list of the top 25 priority products that present a strategic opportunity for the nation. These products have high domestic demand, strong export potential, significant scope for localisation, and provide high value-add opportunities within India," Chandak said.

He said IESA members will start issuing system design or the reference design for some of the products in 6-9 months like electric metres, chargers etc.

"By concentrating efforts on these identified product segments, Indian industry can accelerate import substitution, strengthen supply chain resilience, and enhance domestic manufacturing depth under the broader semiconductor and electronics mission.

"This is not merely about manufacturing more – it is about designing, owning, and scaling products from India to the world," Chandak added.

He said that the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme at present focus on incremental incentive for sale and the government needs to look at mechanisms to incentivise product makers when they increase local sourcing of components. PTI PRS DR DR