'Father Of Pentium Chip' Vinod Dham, MIMO Wireless Tech Inventor Paulraj Among Members Of Govt's Semicon India Advisory Panel

In a bid to make India a global leader in Semiconductor manufacturing, design and innovation, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has formed an advisory committee of experts, comprising of senior government officials, established academicians as well as industry and domain experts.

The Union Cabinet on 15 December last year had approved the comprehensive Semicon India programme for the development of a sustainable semiconductor and display ecosystem in the country on 15.12.21.

A specialized and dedicated “India Semiconductor Mission (ISM)” has been set up within Digital India Corporation to drive India’s strategies for developing semiconductors and display ecosystem.

The newly formed Advisory Committee will steer the objectives in a structured, efficient, and strategic manner, and provide necessary guidance to the ISM executives.

It will also provide insights and suggestions to develop a sustainable semiconductor and display ecosystem in India.

The 17-member Committee is mandated to provide key inputs for building a resilient supply chain, promoting investments, financing mechanisms, global engagement, research and innovation, and IP generation for the semiconductors and display ecosystem and enable an ecosystem to support startups and MSMEs, the MeitY said in a statement on Wednesday (6 April).

The Advisory Committee will be chaired by the Minister of Electronics and IT Ashwini Vaishnaw with the MoS IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar as the Vice-Chairperson.

The Advisory Committee consists of the following industry and academia experts:

Vinod Dham: He led Intel’s iconic Pentium microprocessor from inception, an angel investor and venture capitalist Dham has 40+ years of experience in developing semiconductor products and technologies.

Ajit Manocha: Currently the president and CEO of SEMI (an industry association of companies involved in electronics design and manufacturing) Manocha has over four decades of sterling career in the semiconductor industry. He was the CEO of GlobalFoundries (2011-2014).

Professor Arogyaswami Paulraj: Professor Paulraj (VSM, AVSM & Padma Bhushan) is the inventor of MIMO wireless communication, a core technology for mobile networks. He has made significant contributions to technology development including founding three national-level laboratories during his 25-year stint at the Indian Navy.

Professor Pradeep Khosla: An internationally renowned Electrical & Computer Engineer and university administrator, Prof. Khosla has more than three decades of experience in advanced technology development.

Professor V Kamakoti: A renowned academician and researcher, Prof. Kamakoti designed India's first indigenously developed microprocessor ‘SHAKTI’ and is also a Member of the National Security Advisory Board, Government of India.

Neelkanth Mishra: A member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India, Mishra is the India strategist & Co-head of Asia Pacific strategy, Managing Director, Global Markets Research at Credit Suisse.

Ajai Chowdhry: One of the six founders of HCL. For the last five decades, he has been at the forefront of helping create the electronics industry in India.

The Advisory Committee will meet at least once in three (3) months to provide key inputs to develop the sustainable Semiconductor and Display Ecosystem in India.

The term of the Committee is one year after which it will be reconstituted with the approval of the the Minister of Electronics and Information Technology.