New Delhi The first Made in India chips will be available in the market by year-end, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his Independence Day speech on Friday, ruing the opportunity to get ahead in the semiconductor space that was lost 50-60 years ago.
In a speech with repeated references to the importance of self-reliance, the PM recalled how plans for a semiconductor factory began 50-60 years ago but the files were left to “atak, latak and bhatak,” ( stuck, dangling and meandeing) in bureaucratic limbo.
Now, he added, the country is in “mission mode,” with six semiconductor units in the pipeline and four new ones already approved.
India could have been competing with other countries, such as Taiwan, the US, China and South Korea, who are leading in production, design and export of semiconductors, Modi said. Taiwan dominates nearly all of the world’s most advanced chip production, making about 90% of these semiconductors, mostly through Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the largest chipmaker and a key supplier to Apple and Nvidia.
“This is a technology-driven century. Whichever country embraced technology, they reached great heights…You’ll be surprised to know that semiconductors, which have now become the backbone of many nations, the files of those plans in India were stuck, left and forgotten. The thinking behind semiconductors was killed. We lost 50-60 years. Many countries in the meanwhile continued to gain strength in semiconductors. But today, we are rid of that burden,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}“This is a technology-driven century. Whichever country embraced technology, they reached great heights…You’ll be surprised to know that semiconductors, which have now become the backbone of many nations, the files of those plans in India were stuck, left and forgotten. The thinking behind semiconductors was killed. We lost 50-60 years. Many countries in the meanwhile continued to gain strength in semiconductors. But today, we are rid of that burden,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}“India is reclaiming 50–60 years of lost semiconductor opportunity at speed — with $21B in committed projects, 10 units under construction, and state policies enabling investment and ease of doing business. Backed by a thriving design ecosystem and government–industry collaboration, India is poised to become a trusted global hub for semiconductor design-to-manufacturing,” said Ashok Chandak, President India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA) and SEMI India.
Industry experts told HT that the landscape has changed. Several states now have dedicated policies with incentives and easier business rules to attract investment. India’s design sector is also stepping up product development, supporting the manufacturing drive to build a full design-to-production value chain, they added.
To be sure, Semiconductor Complex Ltd was envisioned in the 1970s and started operations in 1984 in Mohali. It continues to exist as the Semi Conductor Laboratory , a state-owned company.
Under the IT ministry’s India Semiconductor Mission (ISM), 10 semiconductor units have been announced so far, most focused on assembly and packaging, with only two dedicated to fabrication. As HT reported earlier, the first “made-in-India” chip expected this year will be a packaged chip, not one produced in a fab.
Announcing four new units on Tuesday, IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said there is intense competition brewing between three semiconductor facilities to roll out the first such chip before 2025.
Of the 10 semiconductor units approved till now, four are in Gujarat, two in Odisha, and one each in Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, and Punjab. The chips coming out of these units will be used in sectors such as consumer electronics, automotive, defence, telecommunications, mobile phones, renewable energy, among others.