India to host 2nm chip design as ARM expands in Bengaluru: Ashwini Vaishnaw

The minister said the mission, launched in January 2022, has taken a long-term view of building a complete ecosystem. “Today we have 10 units under construction — two fabs and eight outsourced semiconductor assembly and test units. One of them, CG Semi, has started pilot production. Another two units will start pilot production very soon,” he noted.

Is the supply chain coming to India?

The minister said most ecosystem partners — from chemicals to substrates — are now setting up facilities in India. “Whether the 500-odd chemicals and 50-odd gases which are required in fabrication, they are all coming to India. They have set up partners, they are setting up facilities here. Substrate manufacturers have also come, and the ecosystem is taking good shape,” he said.

What’s next under Semiconductor Mission 2.0?

Looking ahead, Vaishnaw said the next phase will go beyond chips to also focus on equipment and materials. “In Semiconductor Mission version 2.0, we’ll be focusing seriously on the equipment which goes into manufacturing chips, and the materials which go into manufacturing chips,” he said.

“Net-net, we are looking at the complete semiconductor stack — design, manufacturing chips, manufacturing the equipment that manufacture chips, manufacturing the materials that manufacture chips, and a complete talent pipeline,” the minister added.