India pushing 'silicon sovereignty'
Policy coverage says India is promoting 'silicon sovereignty' to build domestic semiconductor design, manufacturing and skills rather than rely on imports. The article frames the move as favouring manufacturing ecosystems that combine production capability with higher‑skill jobs. (pcquest.com)
India is trying to build more of the chips business at home, from design software and packaging lines to full-scale factories. (ism.gov.in) The push runs through the India Semiconductor Mission, a federal program approved in December 2021 with a ₹76,000 crore outlay to support chip and display manufacturing. The mission says it is now moving from its first phase into “2.0,” with added focus on equipment, materials, design intellectual property, supply chains and research and development centers. (pib.gov.in) (ism.gov.in) That policy is no longer just a plan on paper. In March 2025, India Semiconductor Mission signed a fiscal support agreement with Tata Electronics and Tata Semiconductor Manufacturing for a semiconductor fabrication plant in Dholera, Gujarat, a project the government valued at ₹91,526 crore. (pib.gov.in) India has also backed packaging and assembly plants, the factories that cut, package and test chips after they are made. The government said in March 2024 that Micron’s unit in Sanand, Gujarat was under rapid construction, alongside approved units by CG Power in Sanand and Tata Electronics in Morigaon, Assam. (pib.gov.in) (static.pib.gov.in) Semiconductors are the tiny switches inside phones, cars, power systems and data centers, and countries want local capacity because supply shocks can shut down entire industries. India’s own market was estimated by the government at about $38 billion in 2023 and $45 billion to $50 billion in 2024-2025, with projections of $100 billion to $110 billion by 2030. (pib.gov.in) India is also trying to keep more of the higher-value work, not just factory floors. Under the Design Linked Incentive scheme, the government set aside ₹1,000 crore for domestic chip design, and by July 2025 it said 23 chip-design projects had been sanctioned for support. (pib.gov.in) The design push reaches into universities and startups, where chip plans are drawn before any silicon is manufactured. The government said 278 academic institutions and 72 startups had been given access to advanced electronic design automation tools, and 20 chip designs from 17 academic institutions had already been fabricated through Semiconductor Laboratory in Mohali. (pib.gov.in) Officials are presenting the strategy as a way to build a full manufacturing ecosystem rather than import chips and only assemble finished electronics. At Semicon India 2025, the government said the first phase had built fabs, outsourced semiconductor assembly and test capacity, capital equipment and materials links, while the next phase would aim to make India “a product nation.” (pib.gov.in) The effort still sits early in the global chip race, where Taiwan, South Korea, the United States and China have deeper supply chains, more experienced workforces and larger installed capacity. India’s answer is to use subsidies, state-backed infrastructure and skills programs to lock in enough design, packaging and fabrication work that the ecosystem can start feeding itself. (pib.gov.in) (ism.gov.in) That is what “silicon sovereignty” means in practice in India: not making every chip at once, but building enough domestic design, packaging and fabrication capacity that imports are no longer the only option. (ism.gov.in) (pib.gov.in)
