The Centre on Wednesday invited fresh applications for chip-making plants and offered a financial incentive of 50 per cent. The latest overture is to investors ready to make the “mature nodes” of more than 40 nanometers.

The Ministry of Electronics and IT in a statement said applications would be invited for setting up semiconductor fabrication and display fabrication units in India from June 1, 2023, under the Modified Semicon India programme.

"Under the modified programme, fiscal incentives of 50 per cent of the project cost is available to companies/consortia/joint ventures for setting up of display fabs of specified technologies in India," the statement said.

The application window for the scheme is open till December 2024.

The ministry said applications for the design-linked incentive scheme is also open till December. A total of 26 applications have been received and five approved under the DLI scheme.

"First window for more expensive 28nm fabs was kept open for 45 days only in January 2022 and received 3 applications that were evaluated by ISM (India Semiconductor Mission) and its advisory group. The strategy now is also encouraging mature nodes >40 nm. Current and new players may apply fresh in various nodes that they have the technology for," said Union minister for Electronics and technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar.

Mature nodes are generally cheaper but globally there is an increasing trend to migrate to the newer 28nm class even as they are more expensive but has better performance.

"It is expected that some of the current applicants will reapply and new fresh investors will also apply," the minister said in a tweet on Wednesday.

The minister also clarified to CNBC TV 18 that there is no rejection of any existing proposal which raises hope for Vedanta which was pursuing 28nm technology.

The government launched the Semicon India Programme in December 2021 with an outlay of Rs 76,000 crore.

"All applicants who had applied under the scheme for setting up semiconductor fabs and scheme for setting up of display fabs are allowed to submit applications under the modified scheme after incorporating suitable modification in their proposals," the ministry statement said.