Modi puts chip plants, nuclear reactors at center of India’s growth push

Prime Minister Narendra Modi used his Independence Day speech on Saturday, 15 August, to set out a broad growth push built around semiconductor manufacturing, nuclear power, energy security and greater global scale for Indian companies.

India now has three semiconductor facilities in commercial production and expects another five to eight plants to come up in the coming years, Modi said from the Red Fort.

He also repeated the government’s target of raising nuclear power capacity to 100 gigawatts by 2047 and said five new reactors would be commissioned during this decade.

The chip numbers are not all new. The government has already approved 12 semiconductor projects across six states, involving investment commitments of more than ₹1.64 trillion. Three have started commercial production.

What is changing is the scale of the effort.

The government approved Semicon India 2.0 in July with an outlay of ₹1.275 trillion, or about $13.4 billion. The second phase broadens support beyond fabrication and packaging to equipment, materials, research, chip design and training.

Modi made clear that he wants India to move further up the manufacturing chain rather than remain dependent on imported components.

“We need components as well as complete manufacturing, complex products. From design to manufacturing, India must become a trusted center of the global supply chain,” he said.

He also urged manufacturers to compete harder on cost and quality and make better use of India’s expanding network of trade agreements.

The nuclear target is a much bigger leap from where India stands today.

Installed nuclear generation capacity was 8.78 GW at the end of July. Reaching 100 GW by 2047 would mean increasing that more than elevenfold. Capacity is expected to reach 22.38 GW by 2031 to 2032 as projects already under construction come online.

Modi did not name the five reactors he expects to be commissioned this decade.

The government is separately pushing ahead with small modular reactors (SMRs). Its Nuclear Energy Mission has set aside ₹20,000 crore for their development, with at least five indigenously designed SMRs targeted to become operational by 2033.

Those are separate plans, and the government has not said whether they are the same reactors Modi referred to on Saturday.

India has also opened more of the nuclear industry to private capital. The SHANTI Act, passed in 2025, allows licensed private companies to participate in nuclear facilities and gives the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board statutory status.

Modi also pointed to the 500 MW Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor at Kalpakkam, which achieved first criticality in April, as evidence that India was making progress with its own nuclear technology.

Energy security came up repeatedly in the speech. Modi said India had avoided shortages of gas, fuel and urea despite disruption from the conflict in the Middle East. His argument was straightforward. An economy that imports much of its energy remains exposed when supply lines are hit or prices jump.

The government is trying to reduce that exposure on several fronts.

On 31 July, the Cabinet approved Samudra Manthan, a national offshore exploration program with an outlay of ₹84,084 crore, or about $8.8 billion, through fiscal 2031.

It will fund seismic surveys, deepwater drilling and shared offshore infrastructure in an attempt to find and produce more oil and gas at home.

Modi brought these efforts together under what he called “Sapta Dhara,” or seven streams of strength, which include manufacturing, agriculture and food production, technology and innovation, infrastructure, defense, the green and blue economies, and India’s soft power.

There was also a pointed message for India Inc.

Modi wants 50 Indian companies in the Fortune 500 and an Indian bank among the five largest in the world. He urged pharmaceutical, technology, consulting and accounting companies to build businesses that can compete with the biggest global groups.

“Our aim should be to have 50 Indian companies in the Fortune 500,” he said.

There was no deadline attached to either target.

Modi also said the government plans to train 10 million young people in artificial intelligence skills over the next year. Free online coaching for competitive examinations is also planned, aimed largely at students who cannot afford private coaching.

The speech comes at a time when India is still growing faster than most large economies but is dealing with a less comfortable global backdrop.

The World Bank in April forecast growth of 6.6% in fiscal 2027 and warned that higher energy prices and supply disruptions linked to the Middle East conflict could weigh on activity.

Much of what Modi announced on Saturday is already under way. The semiconductor projects have been approved. Nuclear expansion has been government policy for some time. Offshore exploration has already been cleared.

The emphasis now is on getting those plans built.

More chip factories have to move from approval to production. Nuclear capacity has to rise far faster than it has in the past. And Indian companies, if Modi’s argument is to hold, have to become much larger players outside the domestic market, analysts said.