Lava aims to manufacture phones in India by 2021, launches its first designed in India phone at Rs 1,499

Domestic smartphone maker Lava is set to design and manufacture phones in India. The Indian multinational company on Tuesday launched India’s first ever ‘Design in India’ initiative and India’s first ‘Designed in India’ mobile phone.
The ‘Design in India’ initiative was launched in New Delhi, by Ravi Shankar Prasad, Minister of Law & Justice and Information Technology, Manoj Sinha, Minister of State for Communications (Independent Charge) and Minister of State for Railways, Government of India, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Cricketer and Former Captain, Indian National Cricket Team and Hari Om Rai, chairman & MD, LAVA International Limited.
Unveiling the Design in India initiative, IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said “Our government has put in place policies and structures to fulfill our commitment to make India a global hub of electronics manufacturing which has led to setting up of 108 mobile manufacturing units in last three years. ‘Design in India’ is a key milestone in that direction and I congratulate LAVA on taking the lead to take this initiative forward”.
Dubbed as Prime X, the feature phone is the first ever phone from Lava to be designed in India. The company has a facility in China and most of its phones are designed and manufactured there. Lava claims that Prime X is the slimmest phone in its category yet and comes with a battery standby time of 17 days. There is also a 2-year replacement warranty with the phone. Going forward, the company aims to launch its first ‘Designed in India’ Smartphone by October, 2018. Furthermore, the company is working towards designing and manufacturing the entire range of Lava mobiles in India by 2021.
An Economic Times report states that company aims to invest around Rs 250 crore over a period of three years in its design centre set up in India.
Lava opened its first Design Centre in Noida in 2016 and manufactures earphones and batteries in this facility. Lava aims to start PCB assembly in its Indian Design centres and will invest Rs 100 crore in the process. The company also aims to manufacture touch panel by 2019.