A conducive manufacturing ecosystem created by the Government for the toy industry has resulted in 52 per cent decrease in overall import of toys and 239 per cent increase in exports of toys from FY 2014-15 to FY 2022-23, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Som Parkash informed Rajya Sabha.
A proactive campaign to promote ‘Made in India toys’ as well as measures to encourage designing of toys based on Indian values, culture, and history, use of toys as learning resource have yielded the desired results.
The Government is also organizing hackathons and grand challenges for toy designing and manufacturing alongwith monitoring quality of toys, restricting imports of sub-standard and unsafe toys and promoting indigenous toy clusters. The drive has led to remarkable growth in the toy industry with a substantial decrease in overall import of toys from USD 332.55 million in financial year 2014-15 to USD 158.7 million in financial Year 2022-23 and increase of exports of toys from USD 96.17 million in FY 2014-15 to USD 325.72 million in FY 2022-23.
The remarkable growth of the Indian toy industry in FY 2022-23 in comparison to FY 2014-15 and development of overall quality of the toys available in the domestic market have been captured in a study conducted by the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Lucknow at the behest of Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).
The report highlights that in a span of 6 years, from 2014 to 2020, these dedicated efforts have led to the doubling of the number of manufacturing units, reduction in dependence on imported inputs from 33 per cent to 12 per cent, increase in gross sales value by a CAGR of 10 per cent and overall rise in labour productivity. India is also emerging as a top exporting nation due to the country’s integration into the global toy value chain, along with zero-duty market access for domestically manufactured toys in countries including UAE and Australia.
The report suggests that in order to position India as a viable alternative to current toy hubs of the world, i.e., China and Vietnam, consistent collaborative efforts of the toy industry and the Government are essential for advancements in technology, embracing e-commerce, encouraging partnerships and exports, investing in brand-building, engaging with educators and parents to communicate with children, valuing cultural diversity and collaborating with regional artisans