India, July 18 -- The Union Cabinet's approval of a Rs 1.27 lakh crore semiconductor programme is timely - the real test now is execution, not intent.

On July 15, the Cabinet cleared Semicon 2.0, a Rs 1,27,500 crore programme launched alongside a Rs 62,500 crore mobile-phone manufacturing scheme. Together, they mark India's clearest statement yet that its chip ambitions are a sustained industrial project, not a one-time bet. The new phase builds on the original India Semiconductor Mission, under which 12 projects worth over Rs 1.64 lakh crore have been approved, and three plants - run by Micron, Kaynes and CG Semi - have already begun commercial production. Semicon 2.0 widens the lens from fabrication alone to six pillars: chip design; t...