New Delhi [India], May 14 (ANI): Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology, Railways, and Information and Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw on Wednesday lauded Operation Sindoor as a significant demonstration of India's identity and the formidable role played by its armed forces under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decisive leadership.

Vaishnaw highlighted that the military retaliation to the Pahalgam attack on April 22 is not only a testament to the country's strategic capabilities but also reflects the new defence doctrine that has been implemented under the decisive leadership of the Centre.

Speaking to the media, Vaishnaw said, 'Operation Sindoor is a very important example of India's 'asmita' (identity), the role of our armed forces, and the decisive leadership that has been there. It also gives an example of the new doctrine that has been formed. It is a praiseworthy development for the country.'

The Union Minister addressed the press about the Union Cabinet's approval of a semiconductor manufacturing unit in Jewar, Uttar Pradesh, India's sixth. It will be a joint venture between HCL and Foxconn and will be set up near the Jewar airport. Production will start in 2027.

HCL has a long history of developing and manufacturing hardware, and Foxconn is a global leader in electronics manufacturing. Together, they will set up a plant near Jewar airport in the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority, or YEIDA.

The chip unit will attract an investment worth Rs 3,700 crore. Ashwini Vaishnaw told reporters after the Cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, that work on the other five units is currently underway and expected to be inaugurated later this year.

The minister said the Jewar unit will have a 20,000-wafer-per-month capacity and produce 36 million (3.6 crore) chips per month. The chips produced at the Jewar plant will be used in mobile phones, laptops, automobiles, and PCs, among other things.

The semiconductor industry in India is still in a nascent stage, with various local and multinational companies intending to tap its vast potential. Chip shortages during COVID-19 realised the importance of indigenous manufacturing to fill the deficiency, for national security, and to galvanise indigenous innovation.

The other five semiconductors are under construction in Gujarat and Assam.

Earlier in the day, Vaishnaw, in his latest blog for the Press Information Bureau (PIB), praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership in Operation Sindoor's success and highlighted that India has decided to rewrite the rulebook on 'counter-terrorism.'

Ashwini Vaishnaw asserted that Operation Sindoor is the 'clearest articulation' of a zero tolerance policy for safeguarding national security.

'The massacre in Pahalgam was not just an attack on innocent lives--it was an assault on India's conscience. In response, India decided to rewrite the rulebook on counter-terrorism. Operation Sindoor is the Modi government's clearest articulation of a zero-tolerance, no-compromise policy to safeguard national security, the PM Modi's doctrine', Ashwini Vaishnaw's blog read.

The Union Minister mentioned the steps taken by Prime Minister Modi in response to the Pahalgam terror attack. From putting the Indus Water Treaty in abeyance to launching military strikes on Pakistani terror camps, these steps prevented Pakistan and the terror groups from anticipating India's response following the Pahalgam attack.

'Prime Minister Narendra Modi ensured every move--from suspending the Indus Waters Treaty to launching military strikes on terror camps, was carefully planned and timed. The government chose strategy over impulse. This helped prevent Pakistan and terror groups from anticipating India's response. It ensured that Operation Sindoor was executed with surprise, precision, and full impact', the blog further mentioned.

The Indian Armed Forces under Operation Sindoor launched strikes at nine terror hideouts in deep areas of Pakistan and Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) in the morning hours of May 7.

The strikes were conducted in response to the Pahalgam terror attack; however, in a quick response, the Indian government suspended the Indus Water Treaty signed in the year 1960 between both countries following the CCS (Cabinet Committee on Security) meeting a day after the attack.

In his address to the nation on May 12, PM Modi said that after the surgical strike in 2016 and the air strike in 2019, now Operation Sindoor is India's policy against terrorism.

The Prime Minister referred to India putting in abeyance the Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack and said water and blood cannot flow together.'

He also said that if there are talks with Pakistan, it will be only on terrorism and vacating Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, which is under its illegal occupation.

The Prime Minister said that Operation Sindoor, launched in response to the Pahalgam terror attack, has carved out a new benchmark in India's fight against terrorism and has set up a new parameter and a new normal. (ANI)