Kamal Ghorui
AHMEDABAD: Amid intensifying geopolitical conflicts and trade tensions, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a strong pitch on Saturday for India as a preferred investment destination. “India is capable, India is competitive, and India is committed. Today, India has only one message for investors worldwide: India is ready, India is reliable, and India will deliver,” Modi said.
Speaking after inaugurating US-based chip giant Micron Technology’s ATMP (Assembly, Testing, Marking and Packaging) plant at Sanand, the first such facility in the country, Modi said Gujarat would provide the lifestyle and social life that international companies desire.“A small town (Sanand) suddenly found its place on the global map. Development and systems are needed; perhaps even today you may have thoughts like, ‘It would be nice if this were there, it would be nice if that were there.’ I assure you, friends, the lifestyle you desire, the social life you desire, the way you live your life, Gujarat will create that too. We will not let you feel anything is lacking.” He said after establishing itself as a software powerhouse, the country is “firmly establishing its identity” in the hardware sector too. The PM said that until 10-11 years ago, discussions about data and chips in India were confined to very close circles, and these often revolved only around IT services.Speaking about the speed of project approvals, he said, “Today’s India is moving forward with this approach — from policy to production. It is visible. Remember, the MoU for this facility was signed in June 2023. Subsequently, the groundbreaking for this facility took place in Sept 2023 in Sanand. In Feb 2024, machines began to be installed in the pilot facility, and today, in Feb 2025, commercial production has begun at this facility. Anyone who follows this sector can understand the meaning of this speed.”Referring to the start of commercial production at Micron’s ATMP facility, he said it would strengthen India’s role in the global technology value chain. The ATMP facility will manufacture SSD (solid state drive) storage devices as well as RAM-type DRAM and NAND products, a govt release said. The company has invested Rs 22,516 crore in its Sanand plant. “The AI Summit introduced the world to India’s vision. This year is yet another proof of India’s commitment to technology leadership. Today, India is rapidly becoming a part of the global semiconductor value chain,” he said. “This is the century of the AI revolution, and semiconductors are the bridge to this change. If oil was the regulator of the last century, the microchip will be the regulator of this century. India decided to move forward rapidly in the semiconductor sector,” the PM said.India is rapidly becoming an integral part of the global semiconductor value chain, and the entire world wants to secure the supply chains for both these technologies, he said. “The two largest democracies — India and the US — are continuously striving for this,” the PM said, adding their collective effort will also make the global supply chain of critical minerals more secure and reliable.
