Expect approvals for 4-5 more chipmaking units in next 12 months: IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw

Up to five more chip manufacturing and packaging units can be expected to be approved under the $10 billion capex-linked incentive scheme, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on June 23.

A day after the formal announcement of a $2.75 billion chip packaging unit in Gujarat's Sanand by Micron under the scheme, the IT minister said that the plant will produce the first Made-in-India chips in the next six quarters.

"At full capacity, Micron's chip unit in India will have a $1 billion turnover. It will also bring with it an ecosystem of at least 200 more component, chemical and gas companies that are critical for the production of semiconductors," he said.

"The ecosystem that Micron will create will help spur more semiconductor plants in the country. The first one always takes more effort," he added.

The big announcements by players like Micron, Applied Materials and Lam Research during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's US visit are a "significant and meaningful milestone" in the expansion of the semiconductor ecosystem in the country, the government said on June 23.

The proposals are expected to catalyse the electronics and semiconductor ecosystem, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar said during a briefing and added that in areas of AI (Artificial Intelligence), and high-performance computing, the partnership between India and the US will shape the future of technology.