SEMICON India 2026
- Inaugurated by: Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Yashobhoomi, Dwarka
- Theme: "Silicon to Systems: Building the Ecosystem"
- Edition: Fifth edition (first held in 2022 at Bengaluru)
- Focus: India's shift from chip manufacturing capability to a complete semiconductor value chain — design, fabrication, packaging and innovation.
Why Semiconductors are a Foundational Technology
- Foundational Industry: Power automobiles, healthcare, defence, aerospace, telecommunications and consumer electronics.
- Advanced Chips: Leading-edge 3-nanometre processors integrate tens of billions of transistors, enabling AI and high-performance computing.
- Global Economy: Global electronics industry valued at around USD 4.3 trillion.
- Geopolitics: COVID-19 pandemic accelerated domestic chip manufacturing efforts worldwide to reduce dependence on limited producing regions.
India's Electronics Manufacturing Growth (2014–15 to 2025–26)
| Indicator | 2014–15 | 2025–26 |
|---|---|---|
| Electronics production | ₹1.9 lakh crore | ₹13.11 lakh crore |
| Electronics exports | ₹38,000 crore | ₹4.24 lakh crore |
| Mobile phone production | ₹18,000 crore | ₹6.27 lakh crore (33-fold rise) |
| Smartphone exports | ₹1,500 crore | ₹2.59 lakh crore |
- India is now a net exporter of mobile phones; ~99% of domestic demand met by local production.
- India is the second-largest mobile phone manufacturer globally by volume.
- Electronics ecosystem has created around 2.5 million jobs.
Semicon India Programme
- Launched: 2021, with an outlay of ₹76,000 crore.
- Aim: Build a complete semiconductor ecosystem — design, fabrication, packaging, testing, equipment, materials and workforce development.
Semicon India Programme 2.0 (2026)
- Approved: July 2026, with enhanced outlay of ₹1,27,500 crore.
- 12 semiconductor projects approved across six states, with investments exceeding ₹1.64 lakh crore.
- Projects cover silicon fabs, compound semiconductors, display fabrication and advanced packaging.
- Three facilities have entered commercial production — shift from policy to production.
Talent & Chip Design Ecosystem
- Target: 85,000 skilled semiconductor professionals this decade.
- Chips to Startup (C2S) Programme: Provides EDA tools and design infrastructure to academic institutions; EDA tools deployed across 320 institutions, training 68,000+ students.
- Design Linked Incentive (DLI) Scheme: 24 chip design projects funded; 105 startups/MSMEs received EDA tool support.
- By April 2026, 211 chips taped out by 75 institutions; seven chips fabricated at nodes up to 12 nanometres.
- ChipIN Centre (C-DAC): Shared access to design tools and fabrication; has supported 1 lakh+ engineers from 500+ organisations (400 academic institutions, 100 startups); 300+ chip designs developed for fabrication at SCL Mohali and global foundries.
Pax Silica Coalition
- India joined the Pax Silica coalition to strengthen global semiconductor supply-chain resilience.
- Focuses on securing the complete "silicon stack" — critical minerals, chip manufacturing, advanced AI systems and infrastructure.
Significance
- Marks India's transition from an electronics manufacturing hub to a complete semiconductor ecosystem participant.
- Strengthens technological self-reliance (Atmanirbhar Bharat) and strategic autonomy in a critical technology.
- Reduces vulnerability to global supply-chain disruptions exposed during COVID-19.