Watch: IT Minister’s Masterclass on India’s Semiconductor Ecosystem

New Delhi:

IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw explained how her ministry is working to create an all-inclusive semi-conductor ecosystem in India in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Make-in-India” vision.

In the over four-minute long video, the minister outlined a plan to develop a comprehensive semiconductor setup in India, involving thousands of talents and a research system involving over a hundred universities in the country.

During his media interaction today after the Cabinet approved three more semiconductor units, the minister outlined the plan on a whiteboard, drawing each step in great detail with a marker.

“The entire process has four main components – design, fabrication, or FAB, assembly-testing-marking-packaging, or ATMP, and electronics manufacturing, or circuits,” the minister explained.

“The primary thing we are developing for this is the talent pool. The second big thing we are doing is research and development or R&D,” he said.

What steps are being taken to increase the talent pool and for Research & Development? The minister explained: “The most difficult and most expensive tools, called electronic design automation or EDA, are supplied by Tools, Cadence, Synopsis and Siemens. These are very expensive. If you go to buy one, you have to “One has to spend Rs 10 crore to Rs 15 crore just for one license. So, we have talked to these three companies and have taken their EDA tools and given them to 104 universities in the country.”

“We have given licenses and logins not only to IITs, but also to Tier-2 and Tier-3 universities, so that they can expose and train their students to use these tools live and not just in theory . Students can do this. Now take a project and design a new mobile chip and make it. This will give birth to new start-ups and add to our talent pool. This talent pool of around three lakhs will be designed, FAB and ATMP Will work in aspects.” he said.

The program is very broad and hence, its foundation is very important, the minister said, adding, “What we have been able to achieve in two years, many countries have not been able to do in five years.”

“We have the design and ATMP components and we have started work on developing the FAB. Now, Applied Materials is the largest manufacturer of the equipment. They have started setting up a plant in India. They are designing in India And manufacturing in India. So, all these will eventually come together and assist in manufacturing in line with the PM’s “Make-in-India” vision,” Mr Vishnu stressed.

Earlier today, the Union Cabinet approved setting up of three semiconductor making units at an investment of Rs 1.26 lakh crore in an effort to cut India’s dependence on imports to meet chips requirements.