New Delhi, Sept. 1 -- The government on Monday reduced the support for silicon fabs from 50% to 40% while notifying the Semicon 2.0 scheme, with Union minister for IT and electronics Ashwini Vaishnaw calling the renewed support "globally competitive"-neither extraordinarily low nor high. Under the 2022 scheme -Semicon 1.0-eligible silicon fabs could receive 50% of project cost. The second edition of the scheme now provides 40% support on an equivalent basis for eligible capital expenditure. Speaking to media on Monday, Vaishnaw said lowering the support won't be a disadvantage to the industry as it is moving at a fast pace, and several factors like ease of doing business and India's policy certainty added to the government's decision making."When we started Semicon 1.0 in 2022, the global semicon majors had serious doubts about India. That doubt is now replaced by confidence. They now believe India is the right place for making major investments in the coming decades," said Vaishnaw. The new scheme, with a total outlay of Rs.1.27 lakh crore, approved by the Union Cabinet in July, has been divided into 10 categories of support and six pillars. The pillars include chip design, machines and materials, expanded semiconductor fabs, advanced packaging, research and development, and talent development.htc...