Comments
India has taken the first step towards Atmanirbharta (self-reliance) in memory chips, which comprise one third of ₹ three lakh crore worth of chips imported in the country, Union Minister for electronics and information technology Ashwini Vaishnaw said after signing of the memorandum of understanding between Gujarat Government and US chip leader Micron Technology Inc for a semiconductors plant in Sanand.
The company will invest $2.7 billion (approx ₹22,516 crore) for the semiconductor ATMP (Assembly, Test, Marking and Packaging) facility providing 20,000 direct and indirect jobs.
The Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) has developed over 45,000 hectares of land for industrial use with plug-and-play facilities. Micron will set up its ATMP facility in Sanand GIDC-II.
On Wednesday, GIDC handed over the Offer-Cum -Allotment (OCA) letter to Micron for the allotment of 93 acres of area within the Sanand GIDC Estate. Micron will focus on transforming wafers into ball grid array (BGA) integrated circuit packages, memory modules and solid-state drives.
“Today, India imports chips worth ₹ three lakh crore, out of which nearly ₹ one lakh crore is memory chips, which is made by Micron and some others. The history that has been created today with this MoU, is a big step towards ensuring India’s Atmanirbharta in memory chips,” said Vaishnaw addressing a gathering in Gandhinagar.
Vaishnaw further stated that unlike many developed countries that have committed huge sums to develop semiconductor industry, India’s policy commitment of $10 billion will still help succeed in the semiconductor programme.
“Globally, the semiconductors industry is growing at a rapid pace, it will grow from $650 billion now to about $ one trillion in the next six-seven years. Other countries are capable to put money and resources to develop semiconductor ecosystem,” said Vaishnaw. “US has deployed some $54 billion, Europe has deployed $48 billion and China has about $140 billion on this industry. We will still succeed as we have committed to develop 80,000 engineers and this commitment comes from the policy itself.”
- Also Read: Micron’s $2.7 billion investment in India may localise electronics manufacturing components
Besides talent, massive investments in green energy, and relatively lower manufacturing cost will be India’s key advantages.
Micron’s investment was announced by the US President Joe Biden last week during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s US visit. “It is a remarkable speed and swiftness on the part of Gujarat government to ensure all required clearances and allocation of land for the project within a week’s time,” Vaishnaw said.
Lauding the State administration for its business-friendliness, Gursharan Singh, Senior Vice President, Micron Technology said, “This conclusion (of project file) was done within 5 months versus what it takes several years in other countries. This is a critical step for Micron, and is a giant leap for India’s semiconductor initiatives. With this project, we are positioning India as a global semiconductor powerhouse,” Singh said.
Gujarat is the first state with a dedicated policy - Gujarat Semiconductor Policy (2022-27) for the sector. Also, the dedicated Gujarat State Electronics Mission (GSEM) under the Department of Science and Technology will assist and attract global investors.
Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel expressed confidence of this project making Gujarat a hub for India’s semiconductor manufacturing. “Gujarat will become India’s first state to make memory chips and it will fulfil the global shortage situation,” he said.
Comments
COMMENT NOW
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.