India will become a major player in the global semiconductor market over the next 10 years, says Home Minister Amit Shah.

He pointed to the semiconductor chip manufacturing plant coming up in Sanand, Gujarat, and said, I can tell you with confidence that in the coming 10 years, India will be a very big player in the field of semiconductors.

U.S. chipmaker Micron is building a $2.7 billion chip assembly and test facility in Sanand, one of the first major projects to be launched under the Rs. 76,000-crore Indian Semiconductor Mission. The facility is expected to deploy its first Indian-made chips by the end of the year.

Earlier this month, the Cabinet also approved a proposal by Keynes Semiconductor to set up a R3, 300-crore plant in Sanand.

Amit says, “Several countries are also looking to understand India’s Digital India initiatives and take similar steps.”

 

He also highlighted the elimination of the 31 percent angel tax in the 2024 budget. This is a move aimed at supporting startups and encouraging innovation. Shah added that for the first time, India celebrated National Space Day on August 23 as a way to increase youth interest in the sector.

Countries around the world spend large amounts of taxpayer money to develop and support their semiconductor industries. This pipeline of funds has led to some successes and some failures. The Indian government is also loosening its purse strings and needs to develop a strategy as soon as possible.

Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, federal budgets have generally been pretty stingy with subsidies. But $11 billion has already been set aside, and largely allocated, to various chip-related projects.