India to become one of biggest chip hubs in next 5 years: Ashwini Vaishnaw

India has commissioned four semiconductor manufacturing units and in the next five years, the country will become one of the biggest semiconductor hubs in the world, Union Railways and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has said.

In a wide-ranging interview with IANS, the Union Minister said that in the coming years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation for the further growth of the industry that will create thousands of jobs.

“There is a clear policy on bringing state-of-the-art technologies to India — be it Artificial Intelligence, Electric Vehicles or semiconductors. Such policies have been made so that the youth of the country can get more employment options and domestic startups can be benefitted,” Ashwini Vaishnaw noted.

Semiconductor manufacturing remained only a dream since 1960 and PM Modi finally fulfilled that dream.

“Four (chip) units have been commissioned today. Technology is developing. Construction is going on fast. There is complete preparation to release the first chip from Micron’s Sanand plant in December itself,” said the Union Minister.

Moreover, the plant that is being set up in Assam will use the chips made there in the world’s biggest EVs, Ashwini Vaishnaw informed.

“In a way, India has a huge potential because we are very strong in semiconductor design. In this spirit, PM Modi has taken a pledge to bring semiconductor manufacturing to India and in the next five years, India will become one of the biggest semiconductor hubs in the world,” the IT Minister elaborated.

“The biggest semiconductor hub will be built in the country. We will work for that effort with the same determination,” he said.

In March, PM Modi laid the foundation stone of three semiconductor projects worth Rs 1.25 lakh crore.

The chip fabrication facility at the Dholera Special Investment Region (DSIR) in Gujarat is being set up by Tata Electronics Private Limited (TEPL) with a total investment of more than Rs 91,000 crore.

The Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test (OSAT) facility in Morigaon, Assam is being set up by TEPL for Semiconductor Assembly, Testing, Marking and Packaging (ATMP), with a total investment of about Rs 27,000 crore.

The OSAT facility in Sanand, Gujarat is being set up by CG Power and Industrial Solutions Limited for Semiconductor Assembly, Testing, Marking and Packaging (ATMP) with a total investment of about Rs 7,500 crore.

The first ‘Make in India’ chip is all set to arrive in December, from the Rs 22,500 crore Micron semiconductor plant in Gujarat that started work late last year.