Budget 2025 boosts middle-class spending, gives a push to India’s toy industry

New Delhi: The budget 2025 was focused on increasing the spending power for India’s growing middle class and that is great for all manufacturers, irrespective of sectors, a top industry leader said on Sunday.

“The announcement to implement a scheme to make India a global hub for toys is appreciable,” K A Shabir, CEO Funskool India Limited said.

On February 1, the Government announced an initiative which will focus on developing clusters, enhancing skills, and creating a strong manufacturing ecosystem to produce high-quality, innovative, and sustainable toys.

This initiative aligns with the ‘Make in India’ vision and is expected to boost the domestic toy industry.

“Building on the National Action Plan for Toys, we will implement a scheme to make India a global hub for toys,” Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said during the Budget presentation in Parliament.

“As India’s leading toy Manufacturer, Funskool has been proudly contributing to the ‘Make in India’ initiative and will continue to do so and work towards strengthening the Indian toy industry,” Shabir further added.

However, government policies like mandatory quality norms and higher customs duties have played a crucial role in strengthening India’s toy industry.

These measures have encouraged domestic manufacturers to enhance production standards, leading to better quality and safer toys.

Additionally, by making imports costlier, especially from China, the Government has reduced India’s reliance on foreign toys giving local players a competitive edge.

As India’s toy exports have seen a decline in recent years, industry leaders expect that this shift will not only boost self-reliance in the sector but also align with the ‘Make in India’ initiative which will promote long-term growth for Indian toy makers.

–IANS