Why India's semiconductor story is a work in progress

India formally joined the Pax Silica grouping on February 20.

- Pranay Kotasthane

India is deeply embedded in the design segment of the semiconductor supply chain, and hence India's presence in the grouping was anticipated. This membership will help Indian firms gain access to important markets and ease the flow of inputs such as chips, chip-making software, and manufacturing equipment. With this positive development, the sole determinant of India's success is the rate of implementation of semiconductor policy initiatives back home.The latest Union budget identified semiconductors as one of the seven strategic and frontier sectors in which the government wants to strengthen India's manufacturing presence. To realise this vision, the budget speech mentioned a plan to launch a second version of the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) that will "produce equipment and materials, design full-stack Indian IP, and fortify supply chains".

As four years have passed since the launch of ISM1.0, this is a good time to assess progress using the government's own spending data over the past four budgets. To make a fair assessment, one must go beyond speeches and announcements to examine actual budget allocations and disbursements.