Economic Survey 2022-23: DPIIT-Recognised Startups Have Created Over 9 Lakh Direct Jobs

Indian startups recognised by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) have created over 9 Lakh direct job opportunities since 2017, the Economic Survey 2022-23, tabled by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Parliament on Tuesday (January 31), said.

In 2022 alone, homegrown startups generated 2.69 Lakh jobs in the country, up 35.8% from 1.98 Lakh jobs created in the previous year (2021), the Survey said.

The Economic Survey is a flagship document of the Ministry of Finance which discusses the state of the economy, achievements, and challenges, among others. This year’s Economic Survey was prepared under the leadership of Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran.

“An impressive 9 Lakh+ direct jobs have been created by the DPIIT recognised startups (self-reported), with a notable 64% increase in 2022 over the average number of new jobs created in the last three years,” the Survey said. 

Like last year, startups were mentioned multiple times in the Survey this year, highlighting the growth of the ecosystem. 

“Capitalising on the digital infrastructure support, India has also emerged as one of the world’s most vibrant destinations for startup ecosystems. Startups are being envisioned as the spine of new India, as they encourage the youth to become job creators rather than job seekers,” it said.

Calling FY15 as the turning point for the country’s startup ecosystem, the Survey said that the government’s reforms, in addition to existing inherent advantages like demography, technological developments, entrepreneurial spirit and market size, have changed the landscape of the startup ecosystem.

The number of jobs created by Indian startups have risen exponentially since 2017. When the startups 43K jobs in 2017 jobs, the number rose to 88K in 2018 and 1.32 Lakh in 2019, it said.

Of the over 84,000 startups recognised by the DPIIT, about 48% hail from Tier-2, 3 cities of the country, the Survey said. 

It also highlighted the initiatives of the Centre like Startup India, National Initiative for Developing and Harnessing Innovations (NIDHI), Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups (CGSS) and Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS) that have helped in the growth of the country’s startup ecosystem.

It must be noted that Indian startups have been hit hard by the ongoing funding winter and global macroeconomic headwinds since last year. This has resulted in them laying off over 21,500 employees since last year, according to Inc42’s layoff tracker.