Nobel laureate Kostya Novoselov, inaugurating the International Conference and Expo on Graphene and 2D Materials ‘GraphIN 2026’ at Kochi. Also seen R Ratheesh, Director General, C-MET; Harry Fisher, Head of Tech Policy, British High Commission; Amitesh Kumar Sinha, Additional Secretary, MeitY, A Seema, Head Sensors and Energy Materials group, C-MET, Thrissur and Sunita Verma, Group Coordinator R&D in Electronics, MeitY.
India is steadily positioning itself as a global hub for electronics system design and manufacturing (ESDM) through a series of policy interventions and investments aimed at strengthening the semiconductor and electronics ecosystem, Amitesh Kumar Sinha, additional secretary, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has said.
The electronics sector has emerged as one of the fastest-growing industries globally and is a key pillar of India’s flagship initiatives such as Make in India and Digital India. The government is working to create a level playing field for domestic manufacturers through tariff rationalization, infrastructure development and targeted incentives, he said.
Sinha was delivering the keynote address at the first edition of GraphIN 2026, the international conference and Expo on Graphene and Two-Dimensional (2D) Materials which opened here on Monday.
Highlighting progress under the India Semiconductor Mission, he said ten semiconductor manufacturing proposals with committed investments of about ₹1.6 lakh crore have already been approved. More than 100 start-ups and MSMEs have also received design infrastructure support under the Design Linked Incentive (DLI) scheme.
GraphIN 2026 is being held in India for the first time as part of the Graphene Conference series, the largest European event on graphene and 2D materials. The four-day conference is bringing together leading scientists, technology innovators and industry representatives to discuss the rapidly expanding frontiers of advanced materials research.
Scientific discoveries
In his inaugural address, Kostya Novoselov, Nobel laureate and Director of the Institute for Functional Intelligent Materials at the National University of Singapore, said that even after nearly two decades of intensive study the material continues to generate remarkable scientific discoveries and technological possibilities. Graphene has evolved from a laboratory curiosity into a versatile platform with applications across multiple sectors.
Recalling the early years of graphene research, he said that when the first major review papers were published nearly twenty years ago, researchers could only imagine the potential of the material. Since then, the field has expanded steadily with new scientific insights and growing technological opportunities.
Some of the most exciting developments are now taking place on the application side, with graphene and other two-dimensional materials opening new possibilities across diverse industries. Only a few countries have the capability to pursue multiple research directions simultaneously and said India is well positioned to play a significant role in advancing both the science and practical applications of grapheme, he said.
R Ratheesh, Director General of C-MET, said graphene and other two-dimensional materials are emerging as key enablers of next-generation technologies because of their exceptional electronic, thermal and mechanical properties.
GraphIN 2026 is jointly organised by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) through the Centre for Materials for Electronics Technology (C-MET) in collaboration with the PHANTOM Foundation, Spain, and The University of Manchester, UK, a global pioneer in graphene research.
Published on March 9, 2026
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