UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw Launches Semicon 2.0 Web Application Portal and Announces 12 Approved Applicants under Electronics Components Manufacturing Scheme

Q1. Consider the following facts about India's semiconductor programme: (i) Of an early batch of 10 projects approved under the Semicon India Programme, 2 were wafer fabs and 8 were assembly/packaging units. (ii) Under the modified programme, both fabs and ATMP/OSAT units were offered fiscal support of 50% of cost on a pari-passu basis. Which of the following inferences can be drawn from the above?

  1. Because both segments were offered the same percentage of support, the subsidy rate alone cannot explain why packaging units outnumbered fabs among the approvals.
  2. Because they outnumbered fabs, packaging units accounted for a larger share of the approved investment than fabs did.
  3. Once the packaging units are operational, India will be able to produce finished chips without importing fabricated wafers or dies.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 1 only

Q2. Which of the following best describes the institutional form of the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM)?

  • A. A joint-venture company of the Union government and fab promoters, formed under the 2021 programme
  • B. An attached office of the ministry working without separate administrative or financial autonomy
  • C. An independent business division within Digital India Corporation, with administrative and financial autonomy
  • D. A statutory authority set up under a dedicated Act of Parliament to regulate semiconductor manufacturing

Q3. Consider the following assertion: A fab-led semiconductor strategy cannot by itself end import dependence unless suppliers of fab equipment, process chemicals and gases are also attracted, as Pillar 2 ('Machines and Materials') of Semicon 2.0 seeks to do. Which of the statements given below support/supports the above assertion?

  1. Among an early batch of Semicon India approvals, assembly and packaging units outnumbered wafer fabs.
  2. Wafer fabrication repeatedly deposits layers and implants atoms into the wafer, and these steps depend on specialised process equipment and materials.
  3. A fab that relies on imported tools and process chemicals stays exposed to disruption in those foreign supply chains, even when its wafers are made domestically.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3