India's chip push warned of cyber threats by IT minister

In a PTI interview, Ashwini Vaishnaw cautioned the Indian semiconductor industry that its rising ability to design and produce chips may be perceived as a threat by entrenched global interests. He emphasized the need for constant vigilance against cyber attacks and other forms of disruption. The warning aligns with the Union Cabinet's Semicon 2.0 programme, approved with a Rs 1,27,500 crore budget to broaden the ecosystem beyond assembly and testing.

So far, the first phase has approved 12 manufacturing projects worth over Rs 1.64 lakh crore, with five already in production. The second phase has attracted roughly Rs 1 lakh crore in commitments, highlighted at the recent SEMICON India showcase where companies such as Applied Materials, Lam Research, Tata Electronics and Fujifilm announced major investments.