India on track to enter top 5 semicon league by 2032: Vaishnaw

Making rapid strides in chip design, advanced packaging, and talent development. These ambitions were detailed by Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw, in an email interview with Surajeet Das Gupta. He underscored the government's goal of making India one of the top five semiconductor nations by 2032 and highlighted SEMICON India 2025 as a key platform for global collaborations, investments, and showcasing the country's emerging semiconductor ecosystem. Edited excerpts:

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The government has more or less committed $10 billion for the first phase of India's Semiconductor Mission (ISM). What are the key areas of focus now, and what is the plan and timeline for India to be among the top five semiconductor countries?

India aims to become an integral part of the global semiconductor value chain. As a foundational industry with applications across multiple sectors, it is essential to develop a comprehensive ecosystem covering design, equipment, chemicals, gases, raw materials, and research and development.

Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decisive leadership, a dream long unfulfilled for over six decades is finally bearing fruit. We are now preparing for the next stages of the semiconductor value chain, including equipment and materials. His focused guidance has driven remarkable progress in a short span.

The first Made-in-India chip will be unveiled soon, and we are on track to become one of the top five semiconductor nations by 2032, within 10 years of launching the mission.