As the government eyes to bolster India’s tech leadership, MeitY’s FY26 budget gets a 48% boost to ₹260 billion, fueling AI, semiconductor growth, and expanded PLI schemes.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has received a substantial 48% increase in its allocation for the FY26 budget, rising to over ₹260 billion, specifically ₹260.2625 billion from ₹219.369 billion in the previous year.
This enhanced allocation broadly supports key initiatives such as the IndiaAI Mission and expanded production-linked incentive (PLI) schemes for semiconductors, large-scale electronics manufacturing, and IT hardware.
A major portion of the budget increase will fund the development of semiconductors, with a revised estimate of ₹39 billion allocated for the ‘Modified Scheme for Setting Up Semiconductor Fabs and Related Facilities.’ This is an increase from ₹25 billion allocated in FY24. Similarly, the ‘Modified Scheme for Setting up Semiconductor Fabs in India’ has seen an increase from ₹12 billion in FY24 to ₹24.99 billion in FY26.
Additionally, the IndiaAI Mission, which aims to enhance India’s artificial intelligence infrastructure, has been allocated ₹20 billion as part of the overall ₹107.38 billion earmarked for the initiative.
MeitY’s responsibilities also extend to overseeing key public sector undertakings, including the National Informatics Centre (NIC), the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), and the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In).
While the allocation for C-DAC has increased slightly to ₹2.75 billion, the budgets for the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and Semiconductor Laboratory have remained steady at ₹6 billion and ₹5 billion, respectively.
“The expanded PLI scheme of ₹62 billion and dedicated R&D fund send a clear signal —India is not just assembling but aiming to lead in design and fabrication of complex systems and chips. However, success hinges on execution of these schemes and lowering barrier for industry to utilise these incentives and schemes,” noted Pankaj Panjwani, CEO and Founder of Indian chip designing company KeenSemi, post the Union Budget 2025-26 on Saturday.
