Rama Krishna Sangem
US President Joe Biden’s recent policy initiative of CHIPS (Creating Helpful Incentives for Producing Semiconductors) is a good opportunity for SMEs (small and medium enterprises), said Elisha Pulivarty, CEO of US India SME Council, Washington DC. Once leader of semiconductors manufacturing, the US later ceded the ground to China, but now wants to regain the top slot.
Elisha, told Excel India on phone from the US that: “President Biden’s CHIPS initiative amounting to $ 53 billions is a huge opportunities for the SMEs from both the countries. Dozens of big and medium high technology firms are going to enter the sector in the coming years”. Elisha’s statement comes against the backdrop of upcoming Incredible Inc awards function by the Council in Bangalore on September 24.
The Biden-Harris administration has taken the CHIPS initiative to trigger massive economic activity that now depends on the supply chain mechanism based out of China. Biden signed the CHIPS Act defining Chip manufacturers. “Chip makers must be a private entity, or a consortium of private entities or a consortium of public- private entities“. The law covers fabrication, design, assemble, test, advanced packaging or research and development o Chips.
Elisha expressed happiness over a similar initiative by the Narendra Modi government too in India for promoting making of semiconductor chips in the country. India has recently announced an initiative to encouraging making of chips with an outlay of around $ 10 billion (around to Rs 80,000 crore). China too rolled out a similar incentives package worth $ 16 billion.
As per the CHIPS Act, the eligible entities will get 25 per cent investment tax credit in the US. The US India SME Council will encourage, assist, guide and lobby for small and medium enterprises that enter this key and critical area of chips making, vital for the electronic industry. “Entrepreneurs from US and India can benefit out of this present scenario where the governments are committed to big growth in this sunrise sector,” said Pulivarty.
India’s ministry of IT and electronics (MeitY) has called for applications from SME startups and others under a PLI (production linked incentives) scheme to make India a semiconductor hub. Indian government also aims to train 85,000 engineers in this area of 175 application specific integrated circuits, among others. The upcoming Incredible Inc awards function will cover these developments, said Elisha Pulivarty.
