World needs new, trusted chip bases, India ready for it: PM Modi | Business News

The Prime Minister said India had achieved in about four years what generally takes countries around a decade to build, but described semiconductor manufacturing as a “never-ending journey”. 12 semiconductor projects were approved under the first phase of the India Semiconductor Mission, spanning fabrication, packaging and other parts of the chip value chain. Three of these have already started commercial production.

India’s semiconductor ecosystem is expanding rapidly. It is opening new opportunities for innovation, investment and growth. Addressing SEMICON India 2026 in Delhi. https://t.co/a7A2Rs89DI

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 17, 2026

The government has now moved to Semicon 2.0, a Rs 1.27 lakh crore programme that widens the focus beyond large chip factories to areas such as semiconductor equipment, materials, design, research and development, supply chains and skilled manpower. Modi said the next phase would see the number of projects increase further, as India sought to build the wider ecosystem needed around semiconductor fabs.

India is witnessing rapidly rising semiconductor demand. It is projected to reach $110 billion by FY30 and exceed $200 billion by FY35, while domestic manufacturing remains at a nascent stage. India spent almost $150 billion on semiconductor product imports between FY17–FY25. Imports grew at a CAGR of 23% during this period, and if this trend continues, annual imports could reach $240 billion by 2035. The government, therefore, has identified building a comprehensive semiconductor ecosystem as an urgent national priority.

Modi sought greater participation from private companies in research and development, saying the country needed industry to play a bigger role in developing advanced technologies. “I urge industry leaders to lead R&D in the country,” Modi said, while also calling on young Indian researchers, including those working overseas, to participate in the sector’s growth. The government, he added, was opening more avenues for international companies to work with Indian start-ups and chip design firms.

At Semicon India, 2026 fresh investments were also announced from two of the world’s biggest semiconductor equipment companies. Applied Materials announced its India Vision 2035, under which it will invest $5 billion over the next decade, including on R&D, expanding the domestic semiconductor supply chain and developing talent. The company also announced a new 140-acre advanced semiconductor research park, and said it aims to expand its India-based supply-chain capacity ten-fold by 2035.

Lam Research, meanwhile, has announced plans to invest around Rs 10,000 crore in India over the next several years to establish its first silicon-component manufacturing facility in the country and expand its advanced R&D operations. The proposed facility will cover silicon ingot production and processing for advanced semiconductor technologies, while building on Lam’s existing engineering and R&D presence in India.

Other global semiconductor executives also pointed to the shift from plans to production. Micron Technology CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said the company’s Sanand facility in Gujarat had begun shipping DRAM (Dynamic Random-Access Memory) and NAND memory products to customers globally. Micron expects to assemble and test tens of millions of chips at the plant this year and scale that to hundreds of millions next year. Its Indian teams have also contributed to more than 3,700 patents, inventions and disclosures, he said.

Infineon Technologies CEO Jochen Hanebeck said India had the potential to strengthen its position across the global semiconductor value chain as its domestic market and technological capabilities expanded. The German chipmaker now has more than 2,800 employees in India.