Context
- Recently, the Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister of India, has approved a series of major initiatives aimed at boosting manufacturing, strengthening India’s semiconductor ecosystem, promoting electronics production, and improving transport infrastructure.
Some Major Cabinet Decisions at a glance
| Project/Scheme | Outlay | Key Features |
| Varanasi Elevated Corridor (Varuna River) | ₹10,998 crore | 43.218 km, 4/6-lane corridor under HAM |
| Varanasi Elevated Corridor (Ganga River) | ₹14,448 crore | Linked to Varanasi Decongestion Plan |
| Semicon Mission 2.0 | ₹1,27,500 crore | Expansion of India’s semiconductor ecosystem |
| Mobile Phone Manufacturing Scheme (MPMS) | ₹62,500 crore | Strengthening domestic mobile manufacturing |
| National Investment Policy for Urea, 2026 | Policy decision | Additional 10 MT urea capacity |
Semicon Mission 2.0
- Builds on: Phase I of the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM), launched December 2021 under MeitY, with a corpus of ₹76,000 crore.
- Six pillars of Semicon 2.0: (i) chip design, (ii) semiconductor equipment & materials, (iii) fabrication facilities, (iv) advanced packaging & testing (ATMP/OSAT), (v) R&D, (vi) talent development.
- Incentives: The new edition of the semiconductor programme — which has provisions to incentivise even suppliers of raw material in the chip manufacturing industry, including minerals and gases.
- Existing traction (Phase I): 12 approved projects worth over ₹1.64 lakh crore — includes India’s first commercial silicon fab, a silicon carbide facility, a gallium nitride micro-LED unit, and 9 packaging units.
Mobile Phone Manufacturing Scheme (MPMS)
- Outlay: ₹62,500 crore.
- Aims and objectives: Launched to boost mobile phone production, deepen domestic value addition, strengthen supply chains, and enhance India’s global competitiveness.
- The scheme also seeks to promote Indian brands, technological sovereignty, indigenous patents, and R&D capabilities.
- Duration: Five years (FY 2026–27 to FY 2030–31).
- Incentives: Provides incentives on eligible sales of mobile phones manufactured in India at rates ranging from 2.25% to 5%.
- Offers an additional incentive of up to 1.5% for domestic sourcing of key components and sub-assemblies.
- Indian brands undertaking product design and R&D will receive an extra 3% incentive on eligible sales.
National Investment Policy for Urea-2026 for Atmanirbhar Bharat (NIPU-2026)
- Formulated by the Department of Fertilizers to address the structural gap between domestic demand (~40 million tons) and domestic production (~30 million tons).
- Target: Setup 8 to 9 new gas-based urea plants to achieve 10 million tonnes (MT) of added capacity, moving India towards complete self-sufficiency in urea.
- Key Changes under the National Investment Policy (NIP), 2026:
- Separates fixed and variable costs to enhance transparency.
- Introduces a Return on Equity (RoE) band with a minimum of 12% and a maximum of 16%.
- Mitigates foreign exchange risk by converting fixed costs into rupees after four years at the prevailing exchange rate.
Highway Infrastructure & Varanasi Decongestion Plan
- Context: Approval of infrastructure logistics under the Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM) to reduce transit bottlenecks, aligned directly with the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan.
- Financial Outlay: ₹25,400 crore for two major highway projects executed by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).
- Key Project Specifications:
- NH-31 Corridor: A 43.218-km corridor connecting NH-31 with the Varanasi Ring Road along the Varuna River (Project Cost: ₹10,998.32 crore).
- NH-19 Corridor: A 46.039-km six-lane elevated/cable-stayed corridor connecting NH-19 with the Varanasi Ring Road along the Ganga River (Project Cost: ₹14,447.64 crore).
With reference to the recently approved Semicon Mission 2.0 and other Cabinet decisions, consider the following statements:
I. Semicon Mission 2.0 provides incentives only for semiconductor fabrication units and excludes suppliers of raw materials and gases.
II. Under the Mobile Phone Manufacturing Scheme (MPMS), companies may receive additional incentives for domestic sourcing of key components and for undertaking product design and R&D.
III. The National Investment Policy for Urea-2026 seeks to promote the establishment of gas-based urea plants to reduce India's dependence on imports.
How many of the statements given above are correct?
(a) Only one
(b) Only two
(c) All three
(d) None
Answer: (b) Only two
Explanation:
• Statement I is incorrect: Semicon Mission 2.0 extends incentives not only to fabrication units but also to suppliers of raw materials, minerals, and industrial gases.
• Statement II is correct: MPMS provides additional incentives for domestic sourcing of key components and for Indian brands engaged in product design and R&D.
• Statement III is correct: NIPU-2026 aims to establish 8–9 new gas-based urea plants, adding around 10 million tonnes of capacity and reducing import dependence.