India Now Has Over 73K Startups With One Woman Director: Govt

SUMMARY

Representing nearly half of the 1,57,066 startups recognised under the Startup India Initiative, women are at the forefront of driving innovation, the ministry said

Companies like BYJU’S, Zomato, Ola and Nykaa have reflected India’s capability to compete in international markets by expanding their operations beyond domestic markets

Startups in India have utilised technologies such as AI, blockchain, and IoT to address both local and global problems, as per a report by Startup India.

The commerce and industry ministry has said that India is home to more than 73,000 startups with at least one woman director.

Representing nearly half of the 1,57,066 startups recognised under the Startup India Initiative, women are at the forefront of driving innovation and economic growth, the ministry added in a statement.

Besides, the statement highlighted that companies like BYJU’S, Zomato, Ola and Nykaa have reflected India’s capability to compete in international markets by expanding their operations beyond domestic markets.

Further, startups in India have utilised technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, and Internet of Things (IoT) to address both local and global problems, as per a report by Startup India.

Launched in January 2016, the Startup India initiative aims to build a strong homegrown startup ecosystem while nurturing innovation and encouraging investments.

Under the initiative, 157,066 startups are recognised by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) and 759,303 users are registered on the portal till date.

Notably, DPIIT-recognised startups get access to a variety of incentives and sops under schemes like Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS).

Other than Startup India, initiatives like Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) and the National Initiative for Developing and Harnessing Innovations (NIDHI) provide infrastructure and financial support to innovators.

In addition, the Startup Accelerator of MeitY for product innovation, development, and growth (SAMRIDH) scheme launched in 2021, aims to support 300 software product startups over four years. The scheme with a total outlay of INR 99 Cr offers funding up to INR 40 lakh per startup through accelerators to scale their businesses.

Earlier this year, Amazon India partnered with Startup India to undertake multiple initiatives to empower startups to build and grow their businesses via ecommerce. The partnership was also aimed at empowering women entrepreneurs via Amazon’s ‘Saheli’ program by providing a platform to showcase their locally made products.