Semiconductor manufacturing to start very soon in India: IT secretary

Electronics and IT secretary Alkesh Kumar Sharma on Tuesday said that the production of semiconductors in the country will start very soon.

He was responding to a query around plan of action of the Ministry of Electronics and IT after state-owned company Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) raised the issue of shortage of electronic chip and printed circuit board (PCB or motherboard) hindering domestic production of electric meters. “India will be one of those top 6-7 partners which will have semiconductor manufacturing. It will happen very soon,” Sharma said.

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Speaking at a conference on technology transfer by C-DAC, Thiruvananthapuram for local manufacturing of smart meters and electric chargers, Sharma said Meity has taken lead in technology development, be it electronic or automotive sector, artificial intelligence. “We have taken a lead when it comes to the climate change initiative. One big component is the shift towards green technology, and EV is an important mission in that. Demand is increasing. We need 5,000 chargers at present in the top 20 cities of India. ToT for EV will provide immense benefit to the country,” he said.

The C-DAC, Thiruvananthapuram under the National Mission on Power Electronics Technology (NaMPET) programme has developed a Smart Energy Meter based on Indian standards and is suitable for Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI). Sharma said that the development of local smart meters will enhance efficiency in metering, reduce power consumption, people will get correct bills and benefit power distribution companies. A senior official from EESL said that it is a transient phase from conventional smart meters to digital smart meters.

“As on date we are facing challenges like hardware components, chips and PCBs (printed circuit board) are not available because of which we all have to depend on different countries. Thanks to C-DAC for developing indigenous technology, we will have our own manufacturing. Our own country PCB should be there,” the officer said.