OFFICIAL STATEMENT of DR. AJAI CHOWDHRY, Founder HCL & EPIC Foundation
EPIC Foundation Hails the New Semicon 2.0
“This is the first time a complete ecosystem approach has been adopted”
16th July, 2026
“This is exactly what we at EPIC Foundation have envisioned for India’s semiconductor journey- a complete ecosystem approach to semiconductors and I am delighted to see it take shape today. This is the first time a complete ecosystem approach has been adopted, covering all six pillars of the value chain – from chip design and fabrication to assembly, testing and packaging, R&D, Talent, indigenous technologies and materialsand I would like to compliment Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw for their sustained vision on this decisive milestoneannouncement. Equally welcome is the new Mobile Phone Manufacturing Scheme (MPMS), approved at an outlay of ₹62,500 crore over five years. Good to see continuity in supporting phone manufacturing.Specially the concept of supporting local sourcing and design and R&D for promoting Indian brands.
What stands out most in today’s announcement is the strong emphasis on design and R&D, particularly chip design, which is the foundation on which a resilient and self-reliant semiconductor ecosystem must be built. And also, there is a very clear direction from the government to incentivize design and R&D for Indian brands. which have been left behind for years and overtaken by Chinese competitors. This is a decisive step towards correcting that imbalance.
The Mobile Phone Manufacturing Scheme (MPMS) will provide much-needed continuity to the units that have already invested in the country. However, what is the most interesting part is that there will be special incentives for domestic sourcing which will lead to much higher value addition.
The government has also demonstrated its long-term commitment to the sector by dramatically increasing the Semicon outlay from ₹75,000 crore to ₹1.25 lakh crore. This scale of investment reflects a serious and sustained commitment to building a globally competitive semiconductor industry in India.
The country has already made significant progress under ISM 1.0, with a large number of units established over the last three years. ISM 2.0 builds on this strong foundation and momentum and sets the stage for the next phase of growth.”
