Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Semicon India 2025 in New Delhi on September 2. Union Minister for Electronics & Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw presented the first “Made in India” semiconductor chip to PM Modi, according to a report by CNBCTV18.
Addressing the tech summit, PM Modi said, “The world trusts India, the world believes in India, and the world is ready to build semiconductor future in India.” He added that when other countries were facing challenges, India recorded the first quarter GDP growth of 7.8 per cent which exceeded all the expectations.
Semicon 2025 showcases India’s strength in making “digital diamond”
“India is assured to progress rapidly to become the world’s third largest economy,” PM Modi said, adding “oil may be black gold, but chips are digital diamonds.” He further stated that at a time when there are concerns in the economy of the world, there are challenges created by economic selfishness, adding that future lies in chips, not oil wells.
“Oil shaped the last century, and the fate of the world was tied to oil wells. But in the 21st century, power is concentrated in the small chip. Though tiny, the chip has the strength to drive the world’s progress at great speed,” he said.
He outlined that the semiconductor global market is worth around $600 billon, and will cross $1 trillion in a few years, and he is confident that India will play an important role in the $1 trillion market.
He highlighted that the Semiconductor Programme which began in 2021, has attracted investments of around $18 billion across 10 projects cleared so far, with the first plant being approved in 2023.
PM Modi also underlined the significance of critical minerals in manufacturing various tech products, and how the country is working to meet the demands domestically. He further stated that he wanted the semicon intellectual property (IP) to be developed in India, which would help the country to be competitive with other nations.
“Critical mineral mission is key focus area. We are looking to meet rare earth demand through domestic production,” he said. “We want semiconductor IP to be developed in India,” PM Modi added.
The PM urged all states to have healthy competition with each other to develop semicon ecosystem, adding that the Government is working on next phase of the semicom programme, and its design is ready, with the policy being a long term commitment to the sector.
“We will meet all requirements of the industry. We are not far from when the world says the chip is ‘designed in India, made in India’.”
While presenting the first “Made in India” semiconductor processor, IT Minister Vaishnaw said, “In three and a half years we have the world looking to India with confidence. The construction of four semicon units is going on at a rapid pace. First ‘Made in India’ chip, under semicon mission, is now ready (CG Power).”
Vaishnaw said that two other plants will release their chips within the next two to three months.
Vikram 32-bit processor is the first fully “Made-in-India” 32-bit microprocessor that is qualified for use in the harsh environmental conditions of launch vehicles. The chip has been developed by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) semiconductor lab.
The IT Minister said that during turbulent and uncertain times, India stands as a lighthouse of stability, and urged the tech players to invest and manufacture in India due to the country’s stable policies.
“Semicon players should come to India due to large talent pool, we had a target of training 85,000 professionals by 2030,” Vaishnaw stated. “India is now becoming a product nation, and expertise, talent, manufacturing facilities will give semicon players a unique advantage.”
“Q1 growth of 7.8 per cent is proof of dynamic economy,” he added.