Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday assured global semiconductor giants that a sound business ecosystem exists in India and when industries invest and create value, the government complements with stable policies and Ease of Doing Business.

He was inaugurating the three-day SEMICON India 2024 at India Expo Mart in Greater Noida. Organized to showcase India’s semiconductor strategy and policy, the conference is being attended by global leaders, companies and experts of the semiconductor industry.

Mr Modi said India is the eighth country in the world to host the grand event related to the global semiconductor industry. “This is the right time to be in India. You are at the right place at the right time,” he said.

The Prime Minister said “In the 21st-century India, the chips are never down,” and added, India of today assures the world “When the chips are down, you can bet on India.”

Like the integrated circuits in the semiconductor industry, India provides an integrated ecosystem, he said. India’s designers have immense talent. Their contribution to the world of designing is 20 per cent and is growing continuously. India is creating a semiconductor workforce of 85,000 technicians, engineers and R&D experts, he said.

“India is focused on making its students and professionals industry ready,” the Prime Minister said, recalling the first meeting of the Anusandhan National Research Foundation which aims to give a new direction and energy to India’s research ecosystem. He mentioned the special research fund of Rs 1 trillion also.

The Prime Minister underlined the initiatives are bound to increase the scope of semiconductors and innovations in the science sector, highlighting the government’s emphasis on semiconductor infrastructure.

India is today powered in three ways, the Prime Minister said. It has a reform-oriented government, a growing manufacturing base and an aspirational market which appreciates technology. This three-dimensional powered environment is difficult to find elsewhere, he said.

The Prime Minister told the semiconductor industry that India’s aspirational and tech-oriented society is very unique. For India, a chip is not just a technology.

“For us, it is a means to fulfil millions of aspirations,” he said. Today, India is a major consumer of chips. “We have built the world’s best digital public infrastructure on this chip,” the Prime Minister said.

The small chip is playing a significant role in ensuring last-mile delivery in India, he said. When even the strongest banking systems in the world faltered during the Corona pandemic, banks in India continued to operate uninterrupted.

Whether it is UPI, RuPay card, Digi Locker, or Digi Yatra, various digital platforms have become part of everyday life in India, he said. Today, India is increasing manufacturing in every sector to become self-reliant. India is undergoing a significant green transition.

The demand for data centres in the country is continuously rising, he said. This means that India is going to play a major role in driving the global semiconductor industry, Mr Modi pointed out.

India is focused today on increasing chips production, he said. The government has taken many steps in that direction. It is providing 50 per cent support for setting up semiconductor manufacturing facilities. State governments are providing additional support.

Due to these policies, more than Rs 1.5 trillion of investments have already been made in the country in the sector in a short time, he said. Several projects are in the pipeline also.

The Semicon India Program is also an excellent initiative. Under this program, financial support is being provided for front-end fabs, display fabs, semiconductor packaging, compound semiconductors, sensors, and display manufacturing, he said.

In other words, work is being done with a 360-degree approach in India, he said. “Our government is advancing the entire semiconductor supply chain ecosystem in Bharat. I mentioned from the Red Fort this year that our dream is for every device in the world to have an Indian-made chip. Bharat will do whatever is necessary to become a semiconductor powerhouse,” the Prime Minister said.

Some people questioned why Bharat is focusing on this, he said. They should study the Digital India Mission. The goal of the Digital India Mission was to provide the country with transparent, effective, and leakage-free governance. Today, its multiplier effects are visible, he said.