Govt readies India Semiconductor Mission 2.0, final touches underway: MeitY Secy S Krishnan

Govt readies India Semiconductor Mission 2.0, final touches underway: MeitY Secy S Krishnan

The government is giving final shape to the second phase of the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM), with most of the fiscal support earmarked under the first phase already committed, Electronics and IT secretary S. Krishnan said on September 2.

Speaking at Semicon India 2025 in New Delhi, Krishnan said, “Almost the entire funding of ISM 1.0 has been fully committed. There are two to three straggling projects still being worked out, but we are in the final stages of preparing ISM 2.0, which will soon be put in the public domain.” He underlined that central and state governments together are expected to provide $30 billion in fiscal support for the sector.

Krishnan highlighted India’s demographic and talent advantages, noting that the country houses over 20 per cent of the world’s semiconductor design engineers and produces 1.1 million STEM graduates annually.

He also pointed to the rapid growth of the mobile phone sector and rising strategic uses of semiconductors in defence and space as reasons for global investors to look at India.

Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, inaugurating the conference, said the next phase of the India Semiconductor Mission was already being rolled out. Stressing the need for speed, Modi remarked, “The less there is paperwork, the more there will be wafer work.” He added that 10 semiconductor projects worth $18 billion are underway, with commercial chips expected to roll out of India this year.

The fourth edition of Semicon is India’s largest yet, with 350 exhibitors from 33 countries and participation from nine Indian states. Modi is scheduled to meet global chip industry leaders at a CEO’s roundtable on Tuesday.