The Indian electronics industry, targeting an ambitious $500 billion in output by 2030, faces a critical hurdle: a widening skills gap. A report released by TeamLease Degree Apprenticeship highlighted that while the sector is expanding at a robust annual growth rate of 25-30 percent, a pressing shortfall of 10 million skilled professionals threatens to stall this progress. The sector's rapid expansion holds the potential to generate 12 million direct and indirect jobs in the coming years, but only if the talent gap is addressed effectively.

Titled ‘People, Supply Chain Innovation with ROI’, the report underscored the necessity of aligning workforce skills with the industry's evolving demands. A.R. Ramesh, CEO of TeamLease Degree Apprenticeship, emphasized the role of government initiatives such as Make in India and Digital India in propelling growth across the electronics value chain. However, he stressed that achieving the sector's full potential hinges on nurturing talent in emerging fields such as the Internet of Things (IoT) and 5G technology.

The industry’s talent pipeline is projected to draw primarily from electrical and electronics engineering disciplines, with supplemental expertise from artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data science (5 percent). Industrial training institutes (ITIs) are expected to supply 50 percent of the workforce, while general educational streams could contribute up to 40 percent.

To meet the escalating demand for skilled professionals, the report called for an education and training overhaul. Programs such as Apprenticeship Embedded Degree Programs (AEDP), envisioned in the new education policy, have been identified as promising solutions capable of producing two million job-ready graduates annually. Furthermore, the report highlighted the urgent need to reskill six million existing workers and upskill four million new entrants by FY28.