Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw on Monday reviewed the progress of four semiconductor chip plants currently under various stages of development in Gujarat.
The review meeting, held in Gandhinagar, was attended by Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi, and IT Minister Arjun Modhwadia. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Vaishnaw said that all four projects are “showing good progress.”
The minister highlighted that electronics manufacturing and semiconductor fabrication are key pillars of India’s growth strategy, as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“Three plants are expected to reach a good production level within the next two to three months, with pilot production already started at Kaynes and CG sites,” Vaishnaw said.
He added that Micron’s mini-plant has already begun pilot production and is being scaled up, while construction of the fabrication facility in Dholera is advancing rapidly. “Dholera is set to become a major high-tech manufacturing hub in the days to come,” he stated.
Semiconductors, the minister noted, form the backbone of modern technology, driving sectors such as healthcare, transport, communication, defence, and space. As global economies move towards digitalisation and automation, he said, semiconductor capability has become vital for both economic security and strategic independence.
Since the launch of the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) in 2021, the country has made remarkable strides in its semiconductor journey. The government’s ₹76,000 crore Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme has played a crucial role in supporting this growth, with a large portion of the funds already committed to ongoing projects.
A major milestone was achieved on August 28 with the inauguration of one of India’s first end-to-end Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test (OSAT) pilot line facilities in Sanand, Gujarat, where CG-Semi rolled out the first ‘Made in India’ chip.
In June 2023, the government approved the first proposal to establish a semiconductor unit in Sanand. So far, ten semiconductor manufacturing projects have been approved across six states — Gujarat, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Odisha, and Andhra Pradesh — with a cumulative investment exceeding ₹1.6 lakh crore.
-ANI