Occupational Health Hazards and Safety Mitigations in India's Emerging Semiconductor Manufacturing Sector

India has a significant industrial opportunity in semiconductor manufacturing, but without developing occupational health and safety systems at the same rate as production capacity, it can present complex hazards from chemicals, specialty gases, cleanroom work, high-energy tools, ergonomic stressors, shift work, and waste handling. Gaps in exposure knowledge, chemical transparency, and long-term worker health surveillance persist in international semiconductor literature. India has a good legal foundation in its OSH Code, but semiconductor facilities need sector-specific controls including process safety management, gas detection, chemical governance, medical surveillance, contractor safety, and emergency preparedness. India should prevent by design: build fabs and OSAT facilities with world-class EHS systems from the beginning, not after incidents happen.   Governments take a more focused and multi-faceted approach to tackling PFAS concerns. Protecting human health and the environment, this vital industry will continue to prosper by collaborating and innovating. Advocate for PFAS legislation and regulations that give authorities the ability to conduct risk-based analysis and controls on emissions and the ability to access chemicals vital to the production of semiconductors. Any policy should take into consideration the reality that there is no foreseeable way to develop an alternative to PFAS for critical applications in the semiconductor industry within decades. Advocate for R&D programs that draw on industry and academic expertise to improve detection, monitoring, control, and abatement; to explore alternatives to PFAS; and to address technical hurdles in developing and deploying alternative materials and manufacturing processes.

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