From chips to fabs: Ashwini Vaishnaw explains how India is building its semiconductor ecosystem
India has approved 12 semiconductor units involving a cumulative investment of $20 billion in the past five years. Three of those units have already started commercial production
- Aug 26, 2026,
- Updated Aug 26, 2026 2:13 PM IST
Electronics and Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Wednesday shared details of how India is building its semiconductor industry. He outlined the progress made over the past five years and the government's plans to expand chip manufacturing, packaging, design, and research.
India has approved 12 semiconductor units involving a cumulative investment of $20 billion in the past five years, the minister said in a detailed blog post, adding that three of those units have already started commercial production.
Micron began production on Feb. 28, Kaynes on March 31, and CG Power on July 4.
He said the government's focus was not simply on setting up chip plants but on building the wider ecosystem needed to support the industry.
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From Electronics To Semiconductors
Vaishnaw described semiconductors as a "foundational industry" because chips power products ranging from cars and mobile phones to drones, aircraft, and MRI machines.
The global electronics industry is estimated at $4.3 trillion and is growing rapidly, he said.
The IT minister noted that semiconductor chips are among the most complex products made by humans. Apple's A19 Bionic chip, for example, is built on a 3-nanometre process and has roughly 30 billion transistors.
The Covid-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of chips and their global supply chains, he said, prompting countries to accelerate efforts to develop domestic semiconductor industries.
India's Earlier Attempts
India's efforts to build a semiconductor industry date back to the 1960s, Vaishnaw said.
Fairchild Semiconductor, one of the earliest chip companies, explored setting up operations in India. But socialist economic planning and "production quotas" led the company to abandon the effort, he said.
Similar attempts continued in later decades without much success.
A renewed push came in the early 2010s, but strategy and execution fell short, Vaishnaw said. In some cases, semiconductor companies shipped equipment to India only for customs authorities to send it back.
The minister said the approach began changing after Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office.
Electronics Manufacturing Laid The Groundwork
The government launched Make in India and introduced reforms in areas including foreign direct investment, taxation, and customs duties.
It also introduced schemes to encourage manufacturing of mobile phones and other electronics.
Global electronics and mobile companies gradually expanded their operations in India.
Today, almost all major electronics companies have a presence in the country, Vaishnaw said. India has more than 300 electronics manufacturing units, with production exceeding $130 billion and exports crossing $48 billion.
Mobile phones have become India's largest exported item, overtaking petroleum products and gems and jewellery, he added. The sector now supports 2.5 million jobs.
Semicon India And 12 New Units
The government launched the Semicon India programme in 2021.
Vaishnaw said the government deliberately chose to build a wider semiconductor ecosystem rather than chase "vanity projects".
The programme began with a $10 billion package to support semiconductor fabrication plants, or fabs, and packaging units.
The government faced scepticism from the industry, he said, including questions such as: "Does India really want to do it?" and "Do you know how hard it is to build clean rooms?"
"Do you know what ultrapure water is?" and "Do you know what lithography machines are?" were among the other questions, he said.
The IT minister said India was conscious of its limitations while developed countries were committing hundreds of billions of dollars to semiconductors.
Five years later, 12 units have been approved, with a cumulative investment of $20 billion.
Three have begun commercial production, while construction is progressing on the others.
Building Chip Design Talent
Vaishnaw said India also needs specialised skills across the semiconductor industry, particularly in chip design.
The government initially set a target of creating a pool of 85,000 skilled engineers over 10 years.
It introduced semiconductor courses, changed curricula, and launched the Chips to Startup programme, providing electronic design automation tools to universities and startups.
More than 320 universities and startups have received access to the tools, he said.
At the latest Semicon India event, 40 chips designed by Indian students using the tools were presented to the prime minister.
Almost all major semiconductor design companies now have large bases in India, Vaishnaw said. Indian designers are working on chips using advanced 2-nm and 3-nm process nodes.
Under the Design Link Incentive scheme, the government has supported 105 startups. It has provided $83 million in financial support to 24 of them.
Fifteen of those startups have since received $118.5 million in venture capital funding, he said.
What Semicon 2.0 Will Focus On
According to Vaishnaw, global semiconductor companies have taken note of India's progress. Companies outside the Semicon programme are investing more than $3 billion, he said, adding that conversations in corporate boardrooms and economic forums have shifted from scepticism to "curiously optimistic".
The government has now announced Semicon 2.0, with seven focus areas.
These include expanding chip design across compute, memory, radio frequency, power, networking and sensors; supporting domestic production of semiconductor manufacturing equipment; and building capacity to produce the 150 to 500 specialty chemicals, gases and materials used in chipmaking.
The government will also support more fabs and continue backing advanced packaging.
On research, Vaishnaw said India currently has 40-nm technology and will develop a strategy to reach 7-nm to 3-nm advanced nodes within eight years.
The government also plans to train 1 lakh chip design engineers.
"Just like the IT sector, we want India to become the semiconductor design capital of the world," the minister said.
He also defended India's focus on building from legacy technologies despite the industry's shift towards 5-nm, 3-nm, and 2-nm chips. "One must learn to walk before sprinting in a full marathon," Vaishnaw wrote.
Countries developing 2-nm technology have decades-long semiconductor histories, he said, while India's current effort is only five years old. "Nonetheless, you're just getting started."
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Electronics and Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Wednesday shared details of how India is building its semiconductor industry. He outlined the progress made over the past five years and the government's plans to expand chip manufacturing, packaging, design, and research.
India has approved 12 semiconductor units involving a cumulative investment of $20 billion in the past five years, the minister said in a detailed blog post, adding that three of those units have already started commercial production.
Micron began production on Feb. 28, Kaynes on March 31, and CG Power on July 4.
He said the government's focus was not simply on setting up chip plants but on building the wider ecosystem needed to support the industry.
Don't Miss: Scaling up India's manufacturing ambitions
From Electronics To Semiconductors
Vaishnaw described semiconductors as a "foundational industry" because chips power products ranging from cars and mobile phones to drones, aircraft, and MRI machines.
The global electronics industry is estimated at $4.3 trillion and is growing rapidly, he said.
The IT minister noted that semiconductor chips are among the most complex products made by humans. Apple's A19 Bionic chip, for example, is built on a 3-nanometre process and has roughly 30 billion transistors.
The Covid-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of chips and their global supply chains, he said, prompting countries to accelerate efforts to develop domestic semiconductor industries.
India's Earlier Attempts
India's efforts to build a semiconductor industry date back to the 1960s, Vaishnaw said.
Fairchild Semiconductor, one of the earliest chip companies, explored setting up operations in India. But socialist economic planning and "production quotas" led the company to abandon the effort, he said.
Similar attempts continued in later decades without much success.
A renewed push came in the early 2010s, but strategy and execution fell short, Vaishnaw said. In some cases, semiconductor companies shipped equipment to India only for customs authorities to send it back.
The minister said the approach began changing after Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office.
Electronics Manufacturing Laid The Groundwork
The government launched Make in India and introduced reforms in areas including foreign direct investment, taxation, and customs duties.
It also introduced schemes to encourage manufacturing of mobile phones and other electronics.
Global electronics and mobile companies gradually expanded their operations in India.
Today, almost all major electronics companies have a presence in the country, Vaishnaw said. India has more than 300 electronics manufacturing units, with production exceeding $130 billion and exports crossing $48 billion.
Mobile phones have become India's largest exported item, overtaking petroleum products and gems and jewellery, he added. The sector now supports 2.5 million jobs.
Semicon India And 12 New Units
The government launched the Semicon India programme in 2021.
Vaishnaw said the government deliberately chose to build a wider semiconductor ecosystem rather than chase "vanity projects".
The programme began with a $10 billion package to support semiconductor fabrication plants, or fabs, and packaging units.
The government faced scepticism from the industry, he said, including questions such as: "Does India really want to do it?" and "Do you know how hard it is to build clean rooms?"
"Do you know what ultrapure water is?" and "Do you know what lithography machines are?" were among the other questions, he said.
The IT minister said India was conscious of its limitations while developed countries were committing hundreds of billions of dollars to semiconductors.
Five years later, 12 units have been approved, with a cumulative investment of $20 billion.
Three have begun commercial production, while construction is progressing on the others.
Building Chip Design Talent
Vaishnaw said India also needs specialised skills across the semiconductor industry, particularly in chip design.
The government initially set a target of creating a pool of 85,000 skilled engineers over 10 years.
It introduced semiconductor courses, changed curricula, and launched the Chips to Startup programme, providing electronic design automation tools to universities and startups.
More than 320 universities and startups have received access to the tools, he said.
At the latest Semicon India event, 40 chips designed by Indian students using the tools were presented to the prime minister.
Almost all major semiconductor design companies now have large bases in India, Vaishnaw said. Indian designers are working on chips using advanced 2-nm and 3-nm process nodes.
Under the Design Link Incentive scheme, the government has supported 105 startups. It has provided $83 million in financial support to 24 of them.
Fifteen of those startups have since received $118.5 million in venture capital funding, he said.
What Semicon 2.0 Will Focus On
According to Vaishnaw, global semiconductor companies have taken note of India's progress. Companies outside the Semicon programme are investing more than $3 billion, he said, adding that conversations in corporate boardrooms and economic forums have shifted from scepticism to "curiously optimistic".
The government has now announced Semicon 2.0, with seven focus areas.
These include expanding chip design across compute, memory, radio frequency, power, networking and sensors; supporting domestic production of semiconductor manufacturing equipment; and building capacity to produce the 150 to 500 specialty chemicals, gases and materials used in chipmaking.
The government will also support more fabs and continue backing advanced packaging.
On research, Vaishnaw said India currently has 40-nm technology and will develop a strategy to reach 7-nm to 3-nm advanced nodes within eight years.
The government also plans to train 1 lakh chip design engineers.
"Just like the IT sector, we want India to become the semiconductor design capital of the world," the minister said.
He also defended India's focus on building from legacy technologies despite the industry's shift towards 5-nm, 3-nm, and 2-nm chips. "One must learn to walk before sprinting in a full marathon," Vaishnaw wrote.
Countries developing 2-nm technology have decades-long semiconductor histories, he said, while India's current effort is only five years old. "Nonetheless, you're just getting started."
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