According to IDC, 1.1 million tablets were shipped in India in the third quarter f 2017 with a healthy 46% growth from the previous quarter and a marginal 3% growth from the same period last year.

The Gujarat government's NAMO Tablet Scheme for the college students was the key driver for the growth within education and government verticals which contributed to the overall commercial growth in the third quarter. The shipment in the commercial segment almost tripled from the same time last year and crossed the consumer shipments for the first time in India, said IDC.

After experiencing continuous decline from last three quarters, consumer shipments witnessed a sequential growth of 24% in the third quarter and the major contributor to this growth was ongoing lucrative online offers during the festive seasons.

Celso Gomes, associate market analyst, Client Devices, IDC India, said, "In the current market scenario where there is rise in demand for phablets, the replacement cycle for tablets have only lengthened. What helps tablet as a category to stay relevant is the subsidized or free tablet distribution schemes by state governments to promote use of connected devices across educational institutions. Also, key tablet vendors are aggressively pushing slates to microfinance, food services, and healthcare companies to digitalize their customer interaction points."