Hyderabad: Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced a significant boost in India’s electronics manufacturing sector on Saturday. He revealed that exports have now exceeded $40 billion, marking an eight-fold increase over 11 years. Domestic production has also surged, growing six times, highlighting the rapid expansion of India’s digital economy.
At the 14th Convocation of IIT Hyderabad, Vaishnaw credited this growth to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s strategic direction. “In just 11 years, we’ve seen a six-fold rise in production and an eight-fold rise in exports. Such double-digit growth is rare globally,” he noted.
Vaishnaw also discussed India’s progress in telecommunications. The country has developed a complete 4G telecom stack in three and a half years, now installed at nearly 90,000 telecom towers, surpassing the network coverage of many developed nations. To boost innovation, the government has set up 100 dedicated 5G labs for students to gain practical experience with next-generation wireless technology.
In the semiconductor sector, the minister announced that India will produce its first large-scale Made-in-India chip this year. He expressed hope that India will soon be among the top five semiconductor producers. The focus is on essential capital equipment and materials for chip manufacturing. Vaishnaw also introduced a major talent development program to train the semiconductor workforce. The government has provided advanced Electronic Design Automation (EDA) tools from companies like Cadence, Synopsys, and Siemens to 270 colleges and institutions. Including startups, this initiative reaches 340 institutions. “No other country has launched a semiconductor talent program of this scale,” Vaishnaw stated.
In transportation, India’s first bullet train is progressing steadily and is expected to be operational by August or September 2027. The Indian Railways has also advanced to manufacturing version three of the Vande Bharat train at the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai, demonstrating significant advancements in local railway engineering.
Vaishnaw identified five key areas driving India’s technological advancement: electronics manufacturing, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, the telecom sector, and railways. These are positioned as crucial for the country’s future growth and global competitiveness. Medak MP M Raghunandan Rao and senior university officials attended the event. Later, the minister visited TiHAN, India’s first autonomous navigation testbed at IIT Hyderabad, which supports research in self-driving vehicles and drones.
