Which of the following statements about "Development of Semiconductors and Display Manufacturing Ecosystems in India" are correct…

Question

Which of the following statements about "Development of Semiconductors and Display Manufacturing Ecosystems in India" are correct?

i. Three semiconductors units will be established under this programme.

ii. All the three units will be located in the state of Assam.

iii. These units will generate direct employment for one lakh people.

iv. Two units will be established in Gujarat and one unit in Assam.

Choose the correct answer given below:

1. A. i and ii only
2. B. i, ii and iii only
3. C. i, ii, iii and iv
4. D. i and iv only (Correct answer)

Correct Answer

Option D — i and iv only

Detailed Solution & Explanation

The correct answer is i and iv only.

Key Points

• Statement i is correct. Under the programme for the Development of Semiconductors and Display Manufacturing Ecosystems in India, the Union Cabinet approved three semiconductor units in February 2024.
• Statement iv is correct. Two units were approved in Gujarat and one in Assam:
  • A semiconductor fabrication plant at Dholera, Gujarat — a joint venture between Tata Electronics and Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation (PSMC), Taiwan; India's first commercial fab.
  • An assembly and test facility at Sanand, Gujarat, by CG Power with Renesas and Stars Microelectronics.
  • An assembly and test facility at Morigaon, Assam, by Tata Semiconductor Assembly and Test (TSAT).
• Statement ii is incorrect — the units are not all in Assam; only one is.
• Statement iii is incorrect — the approved units were projected to create roughly 20,000 direct and 60,000 indirect jobs, not one lakh direct.

Additional Information

• The India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) was launched in 2021 with an outlay of ₹76,000 crore, and operates as an independent business division within Digital India Corporation.
• The mission covers fabs, display fabs, compound semiconductors, ATMP/OSAT units and a Design Linked Incentive (DLI) scheme.
• Why it matters strategically: semiconductors underpin defence systems, telecommunications, automobiles and consumer electronics, and global supply was severely disrupted during the COVID-19 pandemic, exposing the risk of dependence on a handful of countries.
• ATMP stands for Assembly, Testing, Marking and Packaging — the back-end stage of chip manufacture, which is less capital-intensive than fabrication and therefore a natural entry point.