It’s only a matter of time before the first Made-in-India semiconductor chips is produced, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Thursday, in what is seen as a key step towards building an electronics supply chain in the world’s fourth largest economy.
“The pilot line was inaugurated here today, and very soon, the chip produced from this pilot line will be dedicated to the nation by the prime minister,” the IT minister said at the inauguration of OSAT facility of CG Semi Pvt. Ltd. in Sanand, Gujarat.
“This is a major milestone in our country’s semiconductor journey.”
CG Power and Industrial Solutions Ltd., in a tie up with Renesas Electronics America Inc. and Stars Microelectronics (Thailand) Public Co. Ltd., has set up its first Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test (OSAT) units in Sanand at a total investment of ₹7,600 crore.
India’s other chip-making projects are also progressing well, Vaishnaw said.
“I also visited the nearby Micron plant, and the construction is going on at a very good pace. The Kaynes plant and construction are going on at a very good pace,” he said. “And a few months ago I visited Dholera, there also the construction is going on with very good pace.”
Tata Electronics Ltd. is setting up a semiconductor fab in Dholera, Gujarat, and one semiconductor unit in Morigaon, Assam.
“Overall, out of the 10 projects that we have approved in the semiconductor mission, (I’m) very happy to report to all that this is a dream getting fulfilled.”
Chipmaking Overdrive
In June 2023, the government approved the first proposal for setting up the semiconductor unit in Sanand. By February 2024, three more semiconductor units were approved.
In all, four semiconductor projects are under construction, bringing in a total investment of ₹1.5 lakh crore. The cumulative capacity of these units will be about seven crore chips per day.
Earlier this month, the government approved four more semicon projects: two in Odisha and one each in Andhra Pradesh and Punjab.
These units will attract a total investment of around ₹4,600 crore with direct jobs for 2,034 skilled professionals and indrect jobs for thousands others.
