30-Apr-2022: Semicon India Conference 2022 sets in motion the roadmap to catalyze semiconductor ecosystem
Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi’s vision of turning India into a thriving semiconductor hub kick started with multiple Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) signed between the Government, leading semiconductor industry players and industry associations.
The wheels were set in motion to Catalyze India’s semiconductor ecosystem, today, as design and co-development pacts were announced at Semicon India 2022. Recently India has announced the DIR-V Program to develop Siliconize and create design wins for future around SHAKTI and VEGA RISC-V Processors.
DIR-V Program with Prof. Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras as Chief Architect and Shri Krishna Kumar Rao as Program Manager has been initiated with a vision to make India not only a RISC-V Talent Hub for the World but also supplier of DIR-V solutions for Servers, Mobile devices, Automotive, IoT & Microcontrollers across the globe.
DIR-V has announced Five MoUs for the use of indigenously developed RISC-V Processors -SHAKTI and VEGA.
- MoU between SONY India and DIR-V SHAKTI Processor (IIT Madras) for the Systems/Products developed by SONY.
- MoU between ISRO Inertial Systems Unit (IISU), Thiruvananthapuram and DIR-V SHAKTI Processor (IIT Madras) for development of high performance SoCs (System on Chip) and for Fault Tolerant Computer Systems.
- MoU between Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR), Department of Atomic Energy and DIR-V SHAKTI Processor (IIT Madras) for the Systems/Products developed by IGCAR.
- MoU between Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and DIR-V VEGA Processor (C-DAC) for Rudra Server board, Cyber security, and Language Solutions.
- MoU between Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) and DIR-V VEGA Processor (C-DAC) for the 4G/5G, Broadband, IOT/ M2M solutions
Additionally, an intent of MoU was announced between IISc Bangalore and SEMI, USA for building core competence of quantum technologies - multi-qubit superconducting quantum processors, photonic processors, diamond-based magnetometers, lab-level quantum-secured communication network etc.
SEMI, USA and IESA also announced an MoU for exploring the potential for growth of Electronics and Semiconductor industry in India and thereby bring global major players in semiconductor to leverage the opportunities for catalyzing the semiconductor ecosystem in India. IESA also released an industry report - India Semiconductor Market Demand.
Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, said,” There has been an exponential growth in electronics production in India. The sector has grown to fulfill domestic demand and to export globally. This is fueling demand for microprocessors and chips. The time is ripe for India to rise and take up this challenge head on.
Our startup ecosystem is replete with some of the best minds in technology and I am confident that our startups will drive the next wave of innovation, leading India’s digital economy. Our design and innovation ecosystem are robust and thriving and I am certain our next wave of unicorns will be from this sector.”
The second day of the conference also had invigorating sessions and discussions with global and Indian technocrats. Mr. Siva Sivaram, President – Western Digital addressed a rapt audience and spoke on India’s resilience to Semiconductor Supply Chain. Raja Koduri, Chief Architect and Senior Vice President, Intel’s IAGS division delivered a talk on “From Angstroms to Zetta-scale: Silicon, Systems and Software in India”. The session covered the real potential in AI, System Design & middleware for Indian Startups. Mr. Akarsh Hebbar, MD, Avanstrate delivered a session on Indian Opportunities in Integrated Semiconductor and Display. He emphasized on the role of semiconductor sector given the rise in demand and projected growth in the sector in the coming years. Upcoming technologies such as 5G will further boost demand and this sets up India perfectly to build an ecosystem that can cater to local demand and also reach Indian chips and microprocessors across the globe.
29-Apr-2022: PM inaugurates the Semicon India Conference 2022
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated Semicon India Conference 2022 and shared his remarks via video conferencing at the inaugural session today. Union Ministers, leaders of the Semiconductor industry, investors, academics and members of the diplomatic corps were among those present on the occasion.
At the outset, the Prime Minister welcomed all and expressed happiness that the conference is taking place in India. He underlined the critical role of semiconductors in today’s world and said “it is our collective aim to establish India as one of the key partners in global semiconductor supply chains. We want to work in this direction based on the principle of Hi-tech, high quality and high reliability.”
The Prime Minister underlined six reasons for India being an attractive investment destination for Semiconductor technologies.
First, India is building a digital infrastructure to connect over 1.3 billion Indians. Describing the strides that India has recently made in the field of financial inclusion, banking and digital payment revolution, the Prime Minister said “we are using digital technology to transform lives in all sectors of governance from health and welfare to inclusion and empowerment.”
Second, the Prime Minister said, with steps like connecting six hundred thousand villages with broadband investment in developing capabilities in 5G, IoT and clean energy technologies, India is paving the way to lead the next technology revolution.
Third, India is headed for robust economic growth with the world's fastest-growing Startup Ecosystem. India's own consumption of Semiconductors is expected to cross 80 billion Dollars by 2026 and 110 Billion Dollars by 2030.
Fourth, India has undertaken wide-ranging reforms for improving the ease of doing business in India. The Prime Minister informed about measures like the abolition of more than 25,000 compliances, a push towards auto-renewal of licenses, transparency and speed in regulatory framework via digitization and one of the most favourable taxation structures in the world.
Fifth reason, said the Prime Minister, is heavy investment in skilling and training young Indians for the needs of the 21st century. “We have an exceptional semiconductor design talent pool which makes up to 20% of the world's semiconductor design engineers. Almost all of the top 25 semiconductor design companies have their design or R&D centres in our country”, he added.
Sixth, the Prime Minister said that India has undertaken several measures towards transforming the Indian manufacturing sector. “At a time when humanity was fighting a once in a century pandemic, India was not only improving the health of our people but also the health of our economy”, he said. Prime Minister Modi talked about ''Production Linked Incentives'' schemes that offer incentives of over 26 Billion Dollars in 14 key sectors. Over the next 5 years, the electronics manufacturing sector is expected to see record growth, he informed. Shri Modi also told the audience about the recently announced Semi-con India Programme with a total outlay of over 10 billion dollars. This program aims to provide financial support to companies investing in semiconductors, display manufacturing and design ecosystems.
The Prime Minister acknowledged the need for government support and assured the audience of the best efforts of the government to provide a conducive environment for business. “While the industry works hard, the government must work even harder”, he said.
Noting the formation of the new world order, the Prime Minister asked to seize the opportunity that is emerging. “We have worked hard over the last few years to create an environment that encourages growth. India has an appetite for tech and risk-taking. We have put the odds in your favour as far as possible through a supportive policy environment. We have shown that India means business”, the Prime Minister concluded.
23-Apr-2022: Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman participates in the 105th Meeting of the Development Committee Plenary in Washington D.C.
Union Minister of Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman participated in the 105th Meeting of the Development Committee Plenary in Washington D.C. today. The items on the agenda included Digitalisation & Development, Making Debt Work for Development & Macroeconomic Stability and World Bank Group’s Response to Global Impacts of the War in Ukraine: A Proposed Roadmap.
In her intervention at this session, the Finance Minister stated that India’s economic growth in the current year is robust and highest among all large economies and reflects India’s resilience and strong recovery.
Smt. Sitharaman stated that India faced the COVID-19 pandemic crisis with great resilience and made remarkable progress in vaccination and administered more than 1.85 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses.
The Finance Minister underlined that India voluntarily offered COVID Vaccine Intelligence Network (CoWIN) platform to all countries and stand willing to provide assistance for other public-goods platforms recognising the importance of replication of proven and scalable digital platforms.
The Finance Minister drew attention of distinguished gathering in the meeting to the unprecedented situation in Sri Lanka and hoped for decisive relief to Sri Lanka so that they come out of the crisis.
9-Apr-2021: Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman participated in 103rd meeting Development Committee Meeting of World Bank-IMF
Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman participated in the 103rd Meeting of the Development Committee Plenary via video conferencing here today. The items on the agenda included World Bank Group (WBG) and International Monetary Fund Support for Debt Relief Under the Common Framework and Beyond; COVID-19 pandemic: World Bank Group Support for Fair and Affordable Access to Vaccines by Developing Countries; and From COVID-19 Crisis Response to Resilient Recovery – Saving Lives and Livelihoods while Supporting Green, Resilient and Inclusive Development (GRID).
In her intervention at this session, the Finance Minister stated that we are all engaged in steering our economies and people safely out of COVID-19 pandemic. The Government of India has taken several measures to contain the spread of pandemic and also to mitigate its social and economic impact including a series of economic stimulus packages in last one year.
Smt. Sitharaman shared that the Government has announced Aatma Nirbhar Packages of Rs 27.1 trillion, amounting to more than 13% of the GDP. These packages were meant not only to provide social protection to poor and vulnerable but also to push forward the economic reforms.
The Finance Minister noted with pleasure that the WBG has stepped up its financing in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic with total financing approvals exceeding $100 billion for the first time. Smt. Sitharaman appreciated the pro-active role played by the WBG in helping developing countries access vaccines in a timely and affordable manner in coordination with other multilateral agencies like WHO and GAVI.
The Finance Minister urged World Bank to explore the possibility to sustain crisis response keeping in mind debt sustainability of vulnerable countries and financial sustainability of the WBG.
19-Apr-2022: Union Agriculture Minister inaugurates National Conference on Agriculture- Kharif Campaign - 2022
Union Agriculture Minister, Sh Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurated National Conference on Agriculture for Kharif Campaign 2022-23 today at NASC Complex, New Delhi. The Minister expressed satisfaction that that as per 2nd Advance Estimates (2021-22), total food grains production in the country is estimated at 3160 lakh tonnes which will be an all-time record. The pulses and oilseeds production will be 269.5 and 371.5 lakh tonnes, respectively. As per third advanced estimates, horticulture production during 2020-21 is 3310.5 lakh tonnes which is the highest ever for Indian horticulture. The Minister stated that the centre and states would work together to ensure pesticides and seeds availability to reduce input costs for farmers. He urged that there should be a strategy to replace Urea with Nano-urea. He declared that the government would continue to lay emphasis on natural and organic farming. On exports the Minister said that while agriculture exports have increased, attention should be paid on quality products so that they can compete in International Markets. Exporters and farmers both should benefit.
The objective of this conference was to review and assess the crop performance during the preceding crop seasons and fix crop-wise targets for Kharif season in consultation with State Governments, ensure supply of critical inputs and facilitate adoption of innovative technologies with a view to enhance production and productivity of the crops. The priority of government is agro-ecological based crop planning for diversion of land from excess commodities like rice and wheat. to deficit commodities like oilseeds and pulses and high value export earning crops. Government is giving high priority to Crop Diversification with focus on Self Sufficiency in Oilseeds & Pulses and Promotion of Oil Palm. Consultations with all stake holders like major states, researchers, industries and policy makers have been held to finalize a National Policy Frame Work for Crop Diversification Programme in the country. All states should work towards crop diversification for making agriculture sustainable, profitable and self-sufficient in deficit commodities.
The Conference set National targets for total food grain production set at 3280 lakh tonnes for the year 2022-23 compared to expected production of 3160 lakh tonnes during current year. Target for production of pulses and pulses have been fixed at 295.5 and 413.4 lakh tonnes in 2022-23. Nutri-cereals production has to be increased from 115.3 in 2021-22 to 205.0 lakh tonnes in 2022-23. The strategy would be to increase area through inter-cropping and crop diversification and productivity enhancement through introduction of HYVs and adoption of suitable agronomic practices in low yielding regions.
Shri Manoj Ahuja, Secretary (Agriculture and Farmers Welfare), said that the country is maintaining an increasing trend in food grain production since 2015-16. Total food grain production has increased by 25% in last 6 years from 251.54 to 316.01 million tonnes. Oilseeds have followed the same trend and have shown a growth of 42% from 25.25 million tonnes in 2015-16 to 37.15 million tonnes in 2021-22. India’s exports of agricultural products have grown by 19.92% during 2021-22 to touch $50.21 billion ( Rs 376575 crore).The commodities like wheat, other cereals, rice (other than Basmati), soya meal, raw cotton, fresh vegetable, and processed vegetables etc. have registered most positive growths.
He said, “We have to accelerate the production and productivity of agriculture and horticulture sectors for ensuring food and nutritional security in the rural areas. The Government has adopted several developmental programmes, schemes, reforms and policies that focus on higher incomes for the farmers. Action Plan for 3 years Seed Rolling Plan (2021-22 to 2023-24) for all oilseeds with allocation Rs 381.95 crore will produce a total of 14.7 lakh quintals of quality seed of new HYVs will be produced in next 3 years.”
Making a detailed presentation on the strategies for crop management in Kharif season, Dr. A. K. Singh, Agriculture Commissioner said that country has recorded all time high food grains, oilseeds and horticultural production due to timely interventions of the government. Now, special focus is given on oilseeds, pulses and nutria-cereals. Post monsoon, rainfall has been in excess over normal and about 55.76 lakh hectares was under cultivation during summer. Following government policy, there has been reduction in area under rice with corresponding increase in pulses and oilseeds cultivation. Government has worked out requirement of seed and fertilizers and will ensure their timely supply. ( Click here for detailed Presentation)
Secretary (Fertilizers) deliberated on positioning of fertilizers supply for forthcoming season. Detailed presentations were made for new initiatives taken for increasing production of nutri-cereals and celebrating of International Year on Milles in 2023. Cafeteria Approach under RKVY and sub-schemes for farm mechanization were shared for the benefits of the states. Presentations were also given on Digital Agriculture, PM-Kisan and Natural Farming.
Additional Secretary (Agriculture) and senior officers from DA&FW, ICAR and officers of different State Governments participated in the National Conference. The states of Gujarat, Assam, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh shared their progress. This was followed by an interaction session with Agriculture Production Commissioners and Principal Secretaries of all the States to raise issues concerning their states for increasing area coverage, production and productivity during Kharif season.
27-Jan-2022: Union Agriculture Minister addresses 4th National Conference on Agriculture for Summer Campaign 2021-22
Addressing the National conference on Agriculture for Summer Campaign 2021-22 today through video-conferencing, Union Agriculture Minister, Shri Narendra Kumar Tomar said that summer crops not only provide extra income but also create employment opportunities in between Rabi and Kharif for the farmers thereby increasing crop intensity. The Government has taken new initiatives through various programmes for cultivation of summer crops such as pulses, coarse cereals, nutri-cereals, and oilseeds. Though more than half of cultivated area in summer season is under pulses, oilseeds and nutri-cereals, the farmers with irrigation source are growing rice and vegetables during the summer season. He highlighted that area under cultivation of Zaid crops including rice has increased progressively 2.7 times from 29.71 lakh hectares in 2017-18 to 80.46 lakh hectares in 2020-21.
The objective of Zaid conference is to review and assess the crop performance during the preceding crop seasons and fix crop-wise targets for summer season in consultation with State Governments. The Minister assured full support to ensure supply of critical inputs and facilitate adoption of innovative technologies with a view to enhance production and productivity of the crops. The priority of government is to increase production of oilseeds and pulses where large imports are required.
Speaking on the new varieties developed by the ICAR, Shri Tomar said that States should use new varieties of seeds for better production of summer crops. The Minister also asked States to plan in advance for their fertilizers needs and provide estimates to the center so that fertilizer department can provide sufficient fertilizers timely. He also suggested that States should increase the use of NPK and liquid urea and reduce the dependence on DAP fertilizers.
Regarding training to the farmers, Agriculture Minister asked Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) and Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) to jointly conduct the essential training for the small and marginal farmers so that new technology and knowledge reach the grassroots level.
In spite of difficult time due to Covid, country produced 3086.47 lakh tonnes of food grains during 2020-21 (4th Advance Estimates), which will be an all-time record. Pulses and oilseed production has also achieved all time high at 257.19 and 361.01 lakh tonnes, respectively. Production of cotton is being estimated at 353.84 lakh bales with which India is set to rise to the first position in the world. On the production and productivity fronts, the horticulture sector has also outperformed conventional food grain crops.
Addressing the Conference, Sh. Kailash Choudhary, MoS for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare told the states that special focus is now given to increase production of oilseeds and pulses and make country self-reliant. Regarding the promotion of organic and natural farming, Shri Choudhary advised States to send proposals to certify the entire block or area as organic/natural farming block so that farmers who belong to that area need not apply for certificate individually. He also asked States to provide market for organic farmers.
Addressing the States Secretary, Department of Fertilizers said that adequate and timely availability of fertilizers would be ensured. He also gave estimated availability of fertilizers for Kharif 2022. The total availability of Urea is likely to be 255.28 (LMT), of DAP 81.24, of MOP 18.50, of NPKS 76.87 and of SSP 34. Secretary, DARE and DG, ICAR highlighted the latest technological advances made for cultivation of summer crops.
National and state wise targets for pulses, oilseeds and nutri-cereals were set for the summer 2021-22. Compared to 40.85 lakh hectares under these crops in 2020-21, an area of 52.72 lakh hectares will be covered during 2021-22 in the country. Pulses will cover 21.05 lakh hectares while 13.78 and 17.89 lakh hectares will be brought under oilseeds and nutri-cereals, respectively. Pulses and oilseeds will be promoted through Targeted Rice Fallow Area sub-component of NFSM and NFSM (OS&OP). These will also be supported as inter-crops in Sugarcane and Oil Palm.
A presentation by Joint Secretary (Crops and Oil Seeds) highlighted the rain fall situation, region wise live storage of water in major reservoirs, season wise estimated area coverage under different crops, trend and area coverage under Zaid/summer, Existing support programmes for summer crops and State wise area projected for coverage under Zaid/summer crops 2022.
During the conference ‘Working manual on Indian Seed Certification’ was released. Presentations on PM KISAN e-KYC and presentation on Farmers’ database were also made during the conference for the benefit of the States.
Secretary (Agriculture) Shri Sanjay Agarwal and other senior officers from DA&FW, ICAR and officers of different State Governments participated in the National Conference through video conferencing. An interaction session was also organized with Agriculture Production Commissioners and Principal Secretaries of all the States in four groups to share the achievements, challenges and strategies to be adopted in respective states for increasing area coverage, production and productivity during summer/Zaid season in agriculture sector.