New Delhi, May 16 (IANS): The MeitY-backed ChipIN Centre focused on semiconductor design education and VLSI research has been inaugurated at Sona College of Technology in Tamil Nadu on Saturday, marking a significant step in strengthening India’s semiconductor ecosystem and supporting the country’s Make in India chip push. The Sona ChipIN Centre, established at the Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering under the Chips to Startup programme supported by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, C-DAC, and the ChipIN Centre initiative, is equipped with advanced Electronic Design Automation tools valued at Rs 100 million, enabling students, researchers, and faculty to work on semiconductor design, VLSI research, and industry-oriented innovation projects. The centre was inaugurated by Dr V Veerappan, Chairman of the India Electronics and Semiconductor Association, and Shekar Viswanathan, former Vice-Chairman of Toyota Kirloskar Motor. Sona Institutions Chairman C Valliappa called on the centre to work toward developing a Made in India chip within the next 24-36 months in alignment with the government’s India Semiconductor Mission.
Sona Institutions Vice Chairman Chocko Valliappa highlighted that the initiative assumes significance amid India’s rapidly growing semiconductor ecosystem and the country’s entry into advanced 3nm chip development capabilities, adding that the centre will also help produce industry-ready semiconductor engineers. The ECE Department will utilise the facility to train students across multiple programmes including Electronics and Communication Engineering, Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Electronics Engineering VLSI Design and Technology, Electronics and Computer Engineering, and ME VLSI Design. The C2S Programme is a national capacity-building initiative launched by MeitY in 2022 with an outlay of Rs 250 crore over five years, aimed at creating 85,000 industry-ready professionals across undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral levels in chip design and VLSI-related fields. The software ecosystem at the centre includes semiconductor and chip design platforms from leading global technology firms.