NEW DELHI, June 22 -- India is stepping up its bid to build a semiconductor supply chain, with plans afoot to disburse Rs.7,100 crore in incentives this fiscal year with new project targets spanning chip fabrication, manufacturing and design, said two government officials in the know. The government expects the move to attract about Rs.15,000 crore in fresh investment and generate around 4,700 jobs. For FY27, the department of expenditure (DoE) has tasked the ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY) with supporting one semiconductor fabrication unit, nine manufacturing facilities and 30 design firms under the Modified Programme for Development of Semiconductor and Display Manufacturing Ecosystem in India, said the officials. The chip fab unit will receive Rs.2,000 crore in fiscal support and is expected to attract Rs.4,000 crore in investments and generate employment for 1,500 people. In addition, the nine units under the scheme for compound semiconductors, silicon photonics, sensors, discrete semiconductor fabs and semiconductor assembly, testing, marking and packaging (ATMP)/outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (Osat) facilities will get Rs.5,000 crore and are expected to attract around Rs.11,000 crore in investments, generating employment for about 3,000 people. Separately, under the Design Linked Incentive (DLI) scheme, MeitY will support 30 semiconductor design companies with Rs.100 crore to develop 10 semiconductor intellectual property (IP) cores and employ 200 design professionals. "The DoE has allocated Rs.7,100 crore for incentive disbursal in FY27 under the programme, with the clear objective of strengthening domestic semiconductor manufacturing and design capabilities," said one of the officials cited earlier. The FY26 incentive disbursal aim was about Rs.4,000 crore, with the actual figures yet to be released. Queries emailed on 16 June to the ministries of finance and MeitY went unanswered. India had launched a Rs.76,000-crore semiconductor mission in December 2021 to develop a domestic chip and display manufacturing ecosystem and reduce dependence on imports in critical technologies. The dozen projects approved under the mission include Tata Electronics' fab unit at Dholera in Gujarat, being set up in partnership with Taiwan's Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp. (PSMC). Other cleared projects included Micron Technology's assembly, testing, marking and packaging (ATMP) facility and CG Semi's outsourced Osat unit at Sanand, as well as Tata Electronics' assembly and test unit at Jagiroad in Assam. In May this year, the Union cabinet approved two additional semiconductor projects in Gujarat, including an integrated compound semiconductor fabrication and ATMP facility by Crystal Matrix and an Osat facility by Suchi Semicon Pvt. Ltd. Industry experts said government's approach reflects a push to build capabilities across the chip value chain rather than just focus on manufacturing. Ajai Chowdhry, founder of HCL, said the direction looks promising. "It is critical for India to build domestic semiconductor manufacturing capacity. I think the government is largely focused on displays and is also looking at another large fab project. They would like to attract a strong global brand and establish credibility in semiconductor manufacturing," he said. "The good news is that they are looking at supporting 30 design companies... In my view, India's strength lies in chip design. We have a large pool of VLSI talent, and if there is a strong focus on design, it could be a very effective strategy." Queries sent on 20 June to Micron and HCL-Foxconn remained unanswered. A Tata Electronics spokesperson declined to comment, saying the company does not comment on policy matters....