India is embarking on an ambitious expansion of its semiconductor industry with the launch of Semicon 2.0, moving beyond just manufacturing to focus heavily on chip design, advanced packaging, research, and workforce development. This next phase of the national chip program was unveiled by Electronics and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw at the SEMICON India 2026 event in New Delhi on Thursday, September 17.
Expanding Chip Design and Manufacturing Capabilities
Under Semicon 2.0, the government aims to foster at least 200 startups and companies engaged in chip design within India. This builds on the foundation laid during Semicon 1.0, which saw over 105 startups venture into chip design, with approximately 20 securing venture capital funding totaling around ₹800 crore.
The comprehensive strategy for Semicon 2.0 is structured around six key pillars:
- Chip Design: A primary focus to significantly increase the number of domestic chip design entities.
- Machines and Materials: Developing a robust supply chain for capital equipment, maintenance facilities, chemicals, and gases essential for semiconductor production.
- Fabrication Units: Establishing more display, memory, silicon, compound, and logic fabrication facilities across the country.
- Advanced Packaging: Scaling up capabilities in this critical area, including leveraging a new 3D packaging facility in Odisha.
- Applied Research and Development: Promoting industry-driven R&D through collaborative projects between companies and academic institutions.
- Talent Development: A crucial pillar aimed at creating a skilled workforce for the rapidly growing sector.
Boosting Semiconductor Talent Pool
Talent development remains a cornerstone of India's semiconductor expansion. While Semicon 1.0 initially targeted training 85,000 design engineers over a decade, Minister Vaishnaw revealed that 70,000 have already been trained within four years. Furthermore, over 400 universities now have access to leading electronic design automation (EDA) tools from industry giants like Cadence, Siemens, and Synopsys, with the Semiconductor Laboratory in Mohali actively supporting student-designed chip prototypes.
Semicon 2.0 significantly raises the bar for workforce development, targeting an additional 100,000 skilled technicians, cleanroom personnel, and factory-floor workers. These individuals will be directly employed in the new semiconductor manufacturing facilities planned across India.
“We are not just building factories; we are building an entire ecosystem from design to advanced packaging, backed by a highly skilled workforce,” stated Minister Vaishnaw, emphasizing the holistic nature of the program.
Financially, Semicon 1.0, approved in December 2021, had an outlay of ₹76,000 crore. The newly approved Semicon 2.0, greenlit in July 2026, boasts a substantial total outlay of ₹1,27,500 crore, underscoring India's deep commitment to becoming a global player in the semiconductor industry.