Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi led the groundbreaking ceremony of the joint semiconductor facility of Indian-based HCL Group and Taiwanese Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn) in Uttar Pradesh on February 21 (Saturday).

In his speech through video conference, Shri Modi said the ceremony marked a historic milestone in India’s journey toward becoming a global semiconductor hub. Specifically, he said the establishment of the facility is a step for India’s technological self-reliance as this will help boost the country’s presence in the global chip ecosystem.

“During the (COVID-19) pandemic, the world saw the fragility of the chip supply chain. When supply hit a brake, global economies faltered,” Shri Modi noted. Moreover, the prime minister said the country learned from the crisis to turn it into an opportunity to become a self-reliant chip manufacturing country. “Today’s program (groundbreaking ceremony) is a reflection of that vision,” said Shri Modi.

Boosts Domestic Chip Demand

The joint venture of HCL and Foxconn is an outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSAT) in Uttar Pradesh’s Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA). The project, which will bear an investment of 37.06 billion Indian rupees (US$435 million), will support key sectors such as consumer electronics, automotive, and industrial systems.

The facility, with a capacity of 20,000 wafers per month, will help meet the growing demand for advanced technologies. Particularly, the said facility will manufacture display driver chips used in mobile phones, laptops, automobiles, PCs, and other devices with displays. This unit is the first-of-its-kind to be established in Uttar Pradesh under the Mission and is expected to contribute significantly to meeting domestic demand for such chips.

The project will also be eligible for support under the government’s incentive scheme for semiconductor manufacturing.

During the groundbreaking ceremony, the Prime Minister underscored the “monumental shift” in India’s industrial landscape for the past 11 years, with electronics manufacturing growing six-fold.

Concluding his address, the Prime Minister thanked HCL Technologies Chairperson Roshni Nadar and Foxconn Semiconductor Business Group President Bob Chen for their partnership. He noted that Foxconn’s presence sends a global message: “A democratic India is a trusted partner. Our participation in the value chain increases its resilience, a win-win for India and the world.”

24 February 2026