To help boost the country’s ever-growing ‘Make in India’ initiative, the government of India will offer $1 billion in cash to chip makers to set up manufacturing units in the country. The new initiative aims to expand India’s smartphone assembly industry and strengthen the electronics supply chain.
For the uninitiated, India has been offering various benefits and incentives to MNC’s to set up manufacturing units in the country. As a result, we saw major companies like Apple, Amazon, Ola, and even Tesla now looking to be part of India’s manufacturing industry.
Now, amidst the ongoing chip shortage, the government wants semiconductor giants such as Qualcomm and MediaTek to set up their manufacturing plants in India. The report from Reuters cites two anonymous government officials, who briefed the publication about the initiative.
“The government will give cash incentives of more than $1 billion to each company which will set up chip fabrication units. We’re assuring them that the government will be a buyer and there will also be mandates in the private market (for companies to buy locally made chips),” said one of the officials.
As per the report, the $1-billion initiative by India is to compete with China which is the world’s largest smartphone manufacturer. Chips made locally in India will be reportedly designated as “trusted sources” and can be used in various electronic devices, such as CCTV Cameras, 5G equipment, and other similar products.
The government officials further added that no chip manufacturers have shown any interest in the initiative, as of now. Moreover, there is no official word on the topic from the Indian government itself. So, if the initiative goes live in the coming days, we have to wait to see if the country benefits from it or not. Also, it will be interesting to see which chip makers decide to build processors in the country to meet the growing demand for PCs, laptops, and smartphones.
