Kamaljeet Singh, Director-General of the Semiconductor Laboratory (SCL), Mohali, said on Tuesday that India had a strong foundation in chip design at the inaugural session of Semiconductor Summit 2026 in Chennai.
Singh cites chip design as an Indian strength
Kamaljeet Singh, Director-General of the Semiconductor Laboratory (SCL), Mohali, said on Tuesday that India had a strong foundation in chip design at the inaugural session of Semiconductor Summit 2026 in Chennai. The remarks placed chip design at the centre of his account of India’s semiconductor position.¹
SRM Institute of Science and Technology organised the summit in association with The Hindu. Singh spoke during its inaugural session, where he described India’s foundation in chip design. His remarks at that opening session provided one view of the country’s existing capability, while other speakers addressed mission progress, the gap between the semiconductor market and imported chips, and cooperation with Germany.¹
Mission figures distinguish commitments from project status
Under India Semiconductor Mission 1.0, ₹76,000 crore had been committed, Singh said. The amount was stated as a commitment under the mission. His account also set out project approvals and operational status, giving separate information about the programme’s funding commitment and the stages reached by its projects.¹
SRM Institute of Science and Technology organised the summit in association with The Hindu.
The mission had twelve approved projects, of which five were operational, Singh said. The first figure counts projects that had received approval; the second counts those described as operational. The two counts therefore record different project statuses. Together, they give the approval and operating totals Singh cited for India Semiconductor Mission 1.0.¹
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SRM’s vice-chancellor points to market, factories and skills
C. Muthamizhchelvan, Vice-Chancellor of SRM Institute of Science and Technology, said India needed to address the gap between its large semiconductor market and its dependence on imported chips. His statement described both sides of that gap: a large domestic market and reliance on chips brought in from elsewhere.¹
Muthamizhchelvan said factories alone would not close the gap. “We need ideas, we need designs, and we need people,” he said. His formulation named three elements alongside factories: ideas, designs and people. It connected the market-and-import gap he identified with a need that extends beyond building manufacturing facilities.¹
India would need about three lakh semiconductor professionals by 2030, Muthamizhchelvan said. The figure places people alongside the ideas and designs in his remarks, and identifies a future workforce requirement in the sector. It is the professional requirement he cited; he did not give a breakdown by role or specialisation in the available statement.¹
The figure places people alongside the ideas and designs in his remarks, and identifies a future workforce requirement in the sector.
Germany cooperation covers design, manufacturing and skills
Michael Hasper, Consul-General of Germany, said semiconductors had become central to economic competitiveness, technological sovereignty and national security. His remarks set out three areas he linked to semiconductors. He also said that technological sovereignty did not mean technological isolation, distinguishing sovereignty from separation in his account.¹
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Read More →India and Germany established a framework for closer cooperation through a joint declaration of intent. The declaration was signed during German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s visit to India in January 2026. The agreement provides the stated framework for closer cooperation between the two countries on semiconductors.¹
Hasper identified four priority areas for cooperation: chip design and research; power semiconductors; manufacturing technologies and supply chains; and skills development. The list spans research and design, a semiconductor category, manufacturing and supply-chain capabilities, and workforce development. Skills development is one of the four areas he named, alongside the technical and manufacturing priorities.¹
Chip design is the skill to build
If you are weighing a technical role, chip design stands out as the area India already claims as a strength, and it appears in both the SCL chief's remarks and Germany's priority list. The India Semiconductor Mission 1.0 has 12 approved projects but only five operational, so the design side offers a clearer near-term entry point than manufacturing, where factories remain in earlier stages. A role in design or research aligns with the stated cooperation framework with Germany, which names chip design and research as a priority area.¹
For pay or role planning, the projected need for about three lakh semiconductor professionals by 2030 signals that employers will compete for design talent, not just fabrication staff. The vice-chancellor's point that factories alone will not close the gap means ideas and designs carry weight in hiring decisions. If you are choosing a specialization, skills development is one of the four named cooperation areas, so investing in semiconductor-specific training or certifications is a concrete move rather than a generic one.¹
If you are choosing a specialization, skills development is one of the four named cooperation areas, so investing in semiconductor-specific training or certifications is a concrete move rather than a generic one.¹
Sources
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