The opening session of SEMICON India 2026 briefly turned into a birthday celebration on Thursday as Prime Minister Narendra Modi took the stage, with the conference hall erupting in applause and wishes of “Happy Birthday” before he began his address.
PM Modi, who turned 76 on Thursday, smiled and acknowledged the gathering as the birthday greetings rang through the Yashobhoomi Convention Centre in New Delhi, where he inaugurated the fifth edition of the semiconductor industry conference.
The birthday moment came as PM Modi opened an event focused on India’s push to build a semiconductor ecosystem spanning chip design, manufacturing, packaging and electronics systems. The three-day conference, themed ‘Silicon to Systems: Building the Ecosystem’, brings together global semiconductor companies, policymakers, researchers and startups.
Several delegates at the conference held out mobile phones to capture the Prime Minister as he arrived on the dais to deliver the inaugural address. Some shouted out rapturous birthday wishes while others applauded. PM Modi smiled and acknowledged the greetings with folded hands. Before starting his formal address, he thanked them for the wishes.
