Skip to content
IndiaStand
India's Semiconductor Strategy — IndiaStand

Theme

India's Semiconductor Strategy

India is attempting to build a domestic semiconductor industry — from chip fabrication to assembly and design — as a matter of both economic ambition and strategic autonomy. Anchored by the India Semiconductor Mission and large state incentives, the push aims to reduce dependence on imported chips and to position India within friendly supply chains.

Updated

Programme
India Semiconductor Mission (ISM)
Lead ministry
Electronics & IT (MeitY)
Rationale
Economic + strategic autonomy
Coverage since 201915 recorded events ·93% from official & primary sources
2015–2019: 1 event2020–2024: 3 events20202025–2026: 11 events

Why it matters

Semiconductors sit at the intersection of India’s economic and strategic goals. Chips are the critical input for electronics, defence, telecom and AI, and India imports the overwhelming majority of them. The India Semiconductor Mission, run under the Ministry of Electronics & IT, uses large incentives to attract fabrication, assembly and design onto Indian soil.

The two logics

  1. Economic. Move up the electronics value chain, capture manufacturing, and reduce a large and strategic import bill.
  2. Strategic autonomy. Chips are a chokepoint in any great-power contest. Domestic capacity — and alignment with partner supply chains — reduces exposure, a calculation sharpened by competition with China.

Desk maintained by IndiaStand editorial cycles.

Timeline since 1947

  1. official

    National Policy on Electronics 2019 makes wafer fabs an explicit state objective

    NPE 2019 set the vision of positioning India as a global hub for Electronics System Design and Manufacturing, with facilitating semiconductor wafer fabrication facilities and their design/fabrication ecosystem named as one of its main strategies. ISM's own fab-scheme page cites NPE 2019 as the policy parent of the later fab scheme.

    source 1

  2. reference

    India Semiconductor Mission launched

    A dedicated programme and incentive scheme under MeitY to build fabs, ATMP/OSAT units and design capacity.

  3. official

    Fab scheme modified to a flat 50% of project cost across all nodes

    The Modified Scheme for setting up of Semiconductor Fabs in India was notified on 4 October 2022, providing fiscal support of 50% of project cost on a pari-passu basis to approved applicants, with the Centre's share capped at 49% of total project equity where support is given as equity. Implementing guidelines followed on 29 May 2023, and support runs for six years.

    source 1

  4. reference

    First fabs and assembly units approved

    Major fabrication and assembly projects were cleared, marking the shift from policy to construction.

  5. official

    Semiconductor manufacturing scheme guidelines amended under the Modified Programme

    ISM notified an amendment to the guidelines of the semiconductor manufacturing-related schemes under the Modified Programme for Semiconductors and Display Manufacturing Ecosystem in India, the most recent change to the Semicon 1.0 scheme rulebook.

    source 1

  6. official

    Ten units approved under Semicon India with Rs 1.6 lakh crore of investment

    MeitY told the Rajya Sabha that ten units had been approved under the Semicon India Programme carrying Rs 1.6 lakh crore of investment, spanning a silicon fab, a silicon carbide fab, advanced packaging and memory packaging. It also reported electronics manufacturing rising from Rs 1.9 lakh crore in 2014-15 to Rs 11.32 lakh crore in 2024-25, with exports up from Rs 38,000 crore to Rs 3.26 lakh crore.

    source 1

  7. official

    Design and talent pipeline reported: 23 firms under DLI, EDA access for 397 institutions

    Under the Design Linked Incentive scheme, support had gone to 23 companies covering 24 designs for satellite communication, drones, IoT, telecom and AI devices, with free EDA tool access for 94 startups. The Chips to Start-up programme extended design tools to 397 universities and start-ups; 56 chips designed at more than 46 universities were fabricated at SCL Mohali, and over 67,000 students trained.

    source 1

  8. official

    First ISM-backed assembly plant commissioned at Sanand, Gujarat

    The Kaynes Semicon plant at Sanand was inaugurated, moving an ISM-approved assembly and packaging unit from construction into operation.

    source 1

  9. official

    Groundbreaking for India's first advanced 3D packaging unit, in Odisha

    ISM recorded the groundbreaking of what it described as India's first advanced 3D semiconductor packaging unit, in Odisha, framed against AI, 5G and defence technology demand. It extends the programme's footprint beyond the Gujarat cluster.

    source 1

  10. official

    Cabinet approves two more semiconductor units worth over Rs 3,900 crore

    The Union Cabinet approved two further semiconductor manufacturing units with cumulative investment of more than Rs 3,900 crore, continuing case-by-case clearances under Semicon 1.0.

    source 1

  11. official

    Rajasthan gets its first semiconductor plant

    ISM announced Rajasthan's first semiconductor plant, widening the programme's geographic spread beyond Gujarat, Assam, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha.

    source 1

  12. official

    NITI Aayog releases Future of India's Semiconductor Industry roadmap

    The government's policy think tank published a roadmap for the semiconductor industry, an assessment issued outside MeitY as the first phase of the programme neared its successor.

    source 1

  13. gdelt

    Semiconductor push features in Budget 2026 and alliance debate

    Coverage centred on continued incentives and India's positioning within a US-led AI-and-chip alliance framing ('Pax Silica').

    source 1

  14. official

    Second OSAT facility at Sanand inaugurated

    The CG Semi outsourced semiconductor assembly and test facility at Sanand, Gujarat was inaugurated, the second ISM-backed unit at that site to begin operating within four months.

    source 1

  15. official

    Cabinet approves Semicon 2.0 with a Rs 1,27,500 crore outlay

    The Union Cabinet approved the next phase of the Semicon India Programme with a fiscal outlay of Rs 1,27,500 crore, against Rs 76,000 crore for Semicon 1.0. Semicon 2.0 is organised around six pillars — design, machines and materials, more fabs, ATMP/OSAT, R&D and talent — shifting emphasis from chip manufacturing alone to the surrounding supply chain of equipment, materials, gases and specialty chemicals.

    source 1source 2source 3

Frequently asked

What is India's Semiconductor Strategy?
India is attempting to build a domestic semiconductor industry — from chip fabrication to assembly and design — as a matter of both economic ambition and strategic autonomy. Anchored by the India Semiconductor Mission and large state incentives, the push aims to reduce dependence on imported chips and to position India within friendly supply chains.
When was India's Semiconductor Strategy established?
India's Semiconductor Strategy was established 2021 (India Semiconductor Mission).
What does India's Semiconductor Strategy do?
Its remit covers Chip fabrication (fabs) and assembly/test/packaging, Design and the talent pipeline, Supply-chain alignment with partner economies, Strategic autonomy in critical technology.
What is the latest on India's Semiconductor Strategy?
As of 2026-07-02: Cabinet approves Semicon 2.0 with a Rs 1,27,500 crore outlay. The Union Cabinet approved the next phase of the Semicon India Programme with a fiscal outlay of Rs 1,27,500 crore, against Rs 76,000 crore for Semicon 1.0. Semicon 2.0 is organised around six pillars — design, machines and materials, more fabs, ATMP/OSAT, R&D and talent — shifting emphasis from chip manufacturing alone to the surrounding supply chain of equipment, materials, gases and specialty chemicals.

Official sources

The government's own pages for this institution — go straight to the primary.

Related briefs

Related