Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw on Sunday encouraged Gujarat to develop itself as a global hub for data-centres to capture data-hosting opportunities from across the world while speaking at the Gujarat SemiConnect Conference 2026 in Gandhinagar.
The Minister highlighted the growing importance of the AI, Semiconductors, and Electronics Manufacturing trio in the coming years. With the world surging in the production of advanced electronics, the above three are beginning to take centre stage, and India must grasp this opportunity to leverage its advantage of skilled population, clubbed with the fertile ecosystem for growth.
Gujarat has great potential to grow as a data centre for the world with its surplus power and availability of clean energy, presenting a bright opportunity for the establishment of such facilities in the state.
The event was attended by other prominent dignitaries like Chief Minister of Gujarat, Shri Bhupendra Patel and Deputy Chief Minister Shri Harsh Sanghvi. The three leaders unveiled the new ‘Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) 2026–31’ Policy at the event.
Organised by the state government’s Department of Science and Technology, and inspired by the Prime Minister’s vision, the conference carried the theme “Gujarat: India’s Silicon Gateway”, aimed at fostering strategic collaboration between high-tech chip manufacturers and local industry.
The Chief Minister described the conference as the “right job at the right time,” highlighting how Prime Minister Modi’s inauguration of the Micron plant at Sanand has ignited a technological revolution for the country. He added that the conference, which was launched immediately after that historic milestone, will demonstrate the state’s readiness to build a semiconductor ecosystem, attract global partners, and fulfil the vision of an Aatmanirbhar Bharat through research, innovation, and supply chain localisation.
India is developing its semiconductor atmosphere, with Dholera Special Investment Region (SIR) in Gujarat being developed as India’s premier ‘Semicon City’ and a global hub for electronics manufacturing. Located near Ahmedabad, it is the site of India’s first commercial semiconductor fabrication unit by Tata Electronics.
By: Shreya Bansal, Sub-Editor
