Editorial 2: Signing the future, chip by chip
Context:
Recently Semicon India 2025 was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This marks the series of Initiative which India has taken from Digital India, United Payment Interface (UPI), and Semiconductor Mission. Today India has become a competitive hub of semiconductors integrating the supply chains.
Importance of Semiconductor in current scenario:
- Earlier computer used massive vacuum tubes. They used to look like the old telephone exchange. Today, a small chip contains billions of transistors and it may perform many complex functions.
- Nation must focus on the sectors crucial for its growth. For India, these foundational sectors include steel, power, telecom, chemicals, and transport. Steel is the base for building public infrastructure such as bridges, railways.
- Similarly semiconductors are required in variety of sectors. These chips are used in mobile phones, cars, medical equipments, defense system, power grids, and artificial intelligence.
- Without chips, there can be no modern communication, no renewable energy systems, no secure defense etc.
- Country that depends on other countries for semiconductor supply risks becoming dependent even for basic needs such as healthcare, security. Achieving self-reliance in its production act as the key driver for its economic growth.
- During Covid pandemic, global chips supply was hindered. This has ill effects for other sectors such as auto making, consumer electronics.
- Presently chip making n concentrated in few regions of world. They now became crucial in Geopolitics.
- Rare earth metals used in these chips are majorly found in China. This unilateral control over these elements has become the matter of contention among major powers.
- Demand for semiconductors is expected to rise in near future.
Semiconductor Industry in India:
- Today India has 65 crore Smartphone users and electronics industry worth Rs.12 lakh crores annually. We are also building AI-based systems, data centers, and electric vehicles. These sunrise sectors need semiconductor chips. India must become an important part of the global supply chain of semiconductors.
- Under Semiconductor Mission, 10 semiconductor plants have been granted approval. It can be said with confidence that by the end of this year, first “Made in India” chip will be out. Pilot production has already started in Sanand. Four more plants are to be operational at the end of this year.
- Many giants such as Applied Materials, Lam Research are investing in these production units. These investments are made under the ecosystem-approach for long—term growth of this industry.
- Factors responsible for it success are-global cooperation, strong government support. Today, India has more than 20% of the global design workforce. India is ready to fulfill the shortage in workforce supply.
- More than 60000 users in start-ups and institutions are using world-class Electronic Design Automation (EDA) tools which are open access tools provided by Government of India.
- Many start-ups have been successful in these sectors and they are nurtured under the Design Linked Incentive (DLI) scheme. Mindgrove Technologies is developing IoT chips built on indigenously developed SHAKTI processor by IIT Madras.
- Semiconductor Laboratory in India is being modernized to support the innovative ideas of Youth. This will help them in applying their theoretical knowledge. College students from 17 institutes have already built 20 chips.
- Global giants are also investing in building strong workforce in India. Lam Research has trained 60,000 engineers. Many such companies are also tying with IITs, IISC to ensure lab-to-fab workforce. India is also collaborating with US, EU, Japan, to build its future workforce. This domestic and global cooperation will increase its manufacturing capacity.
- India has started with Digital India which built the digital public infrastructure in India. It has then focuses don India Stack, UPI, Aadhar, and telecom networks have increased technology penetration. Electronic equipment manufacturing was also given boost.
- Now the focus is on developing ecosystem for semiconductor manufacturing.
Way Forward:
India has started Semicon India Summit 2025, which has seen the participation of 48 countries, 5000 companies. With the investments increasing, foreign collaborations, trained workforce and policy support, India will emerge as competitive hub for the entire semiconductor chain. This will also support other sectors such as mobile phones, data centers, and consumer electronics.