India’s manufacturing ambitions increasingly include high-tech products such as semiconductors, electronics and electric vehicles. These sectors are important markers of the country’s progress, but they are only part of the larger manufacturing picture. India’s ability to manufacture competitively also depends on industrial foundations that support production such as glass, packaging, chemicals, cement and industrial materials, which supply essential inputs to businesses across the economy.
As manufacturing expands, these industries will need to keep pace with changing customer requirements, tighter quality standards, and the need to produce more efficiently. Their performance affects not only their own sectors but also the efficiency and resilience of the wider manufacturing economy.
The competitiveness and quality of a finished product depends, in part, on the suppliers behind it. Manufacturers need access to materials, components and packaging that meet the required specifications, arrive on time, and remain cost competitive. When these inputs are unreliable or difficult to source, the effects can extend across production schedules and supply chains.
This becomes especially important as global companies seek to diversify their manufacturing and sourcing networks. India has an opportunity to attract investment in high-tech industries and to strengthening the domestic supplier base that support them. Reliable local suppliers improve responsiveness and reduce exposure to disruptions, making the wider manufacturing ecosystem more resilient.
Glass manufacturing is one example. Glass containers serve pharmaceutical, food and beverage and other consumer markets, where quality and consistency are essential. In pharmaceutical packaging, for instance, containers must meet stringent requirements because their performance is integral to product safety. Meeting such requirements consistently, at commercial scale and competitive cost, calls for sustained investment in manufacturing processes and quality systems.
{{/usCountry}}Glass manufacturing is one example. Glass containers serve pharmaceutical, food and beverage and other consumer markets, where quality and consistency are essential. In pharmaceutical packaging, for instance, containers must meet stringent requirements because their performance is integral to product safety. Meeting such requirements consistently, at commercial scale and competitive cost, calls for sustained investment in manufacturing processes and quality systems.
{{/usCountry}}For established manufacturers, technology adoption is increasingly linked to productivity, quality and operating costs. In glass manufacturing, furnaces operate continuously at very high temperatures, making energy consumption a significant operating cost. Improvements in process control can help optimise furnace performance, while predictive maintenance can identify potential problems before they disrupt production. Automated inspection can also help detect defects and reduce rejects.
Technology itself is not the point. What matters is whether it improves efficiency, quality and reliability. Opportunities vary by industry, but manufacturers increasingly need to understand their processes better, identify sources of loss, and make decisions based on reliable production data. Not all progress means advanced AI; much of it starts with better measurement, process discipline and maintenance.
The operating conditions of manufacturers are also key to modernization. Better equipment needs people who are skilled enough to use it well. Reliable and competitively priced energy and efficient transport networks have an impact on operating costs and movement of goods. Industry and academia have a role to play in developing the necessary technical skills, and investment in infrastructure can help manufacturers compete more effectively.
The National Manufacturing Mission announced in the Union Budget for 2025-26 offers an opportunity to support this wider industrial development. Its focus across small, medium and large industries provides a basis for strengthening manufacturing capabilities beyond a handful of high-profile sectors. The test will be whether support for technology adoption, skills and investment lifts industrial productivity.
India’s manufacturing capability is not limited to the products it can develop or the factories it can attract. It also lies in the strength of the suppliers and industrial processes that support reliable production on a scale. Building that depth across established and advanced sectors will be important to India’s ability to attract long-term investment and compete in global supply chains.
(The views expressed are personal)
This article is authored by Rajesh Khosla, CEO, AGI Greenpac Limited.