Rajasthan To Invest INR 700 Cr To Set Up Digital University To Foster Tech Innovation: Col. Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore

The Rajasthan government will invest INR 700 Cr to set up a digital university to foster technological innovation in the state, minister of information technology and communication in the state Col. Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore said. 

Speaking at a fireside discussion with Inc42 cofounder Vaibhav Vardhan during Inc42’s angel investing workshop ‘Angel Rajasthan’, Col. Rathore said that the state government is also working with top developers to build a 100-acre fintech park in Jaipur to provide training and job opportunities to the youth.

Col. Rathore is an Olympic medallist in shooting and a retired colonel in the Indian army. Besides IT & communication, he is also handling the industry and commerce and youth affairs and sports ministries in the Rajasthan government currently.

Rathore discussed a slew of issues during the discussion, including the mindset of founders and angel investors and the Rajasthan government’s efforts to encourage innovation by startups. 

How iStart Rajasthan Is Facilitating Startups 

Amid the startup boom in the country, the Rajasthan government launched the iStart Rajasthan initiative in 2017 to foster innovation, create jobs and facilitate investments in the state. The government aims to accelerate economic growth and development, facilitate knowledge exchange and offer easy access to funding. 

About 400 startups have received funding under the initiative since its launch. iStart Rajasthan has facilitated the creation of 29K+ jobs within the state and has not only become a magnet for global talent but also gained national recognition.

During the discussion, Col. Rathore spoke about emerging sectors, such as agritech, AI, data, renewable energy, education and healthtech. iStart Rajasthan actively supports startups across these sectors. While Rajasthan is home to 3.9K+ DPIIT-registered startups, enterprisetech occupies the major chunk (22.9%). Other sectors like ecommerce, edtech, healthtech, real estate and agritech are gradually catching up. 

Rathore also highlighted the potential of the emerging sectors to increase the state’s exports. Despite being among the topmost producers of agricultural commodities, such as mustard, moth beans, bajra, guar, and isabgol, and one of the leading states in gems, jewellery, and handicrafts, Rajasthan’s share in India’s total exports is low. 

“We have the appropriate resources at our disposal and we are becoming quality-conscious gradually, which means that we will be exporting our goods to the rest of the world at a greater pace,” Rathore said.

Rajasthan Government’s Efforts To Fuel The Startup Wave

Programmes such as Angel Rajasthan are an attempt to provide investors with the much-needed know-how to ace startup investing and bolster the startup ecosystem.

“Angel investors must look beyond knowledge and tap into a founder’s drive. You must spot the madness and the willingness to make it through. You need to see whether these budding entrepreneurs are committed or not, and if they are ready to go all in,” Col. Rathore advised angel investors during the event. 

Out of the 3.9K+ startups onboarded under the iStart Rajasthan programme, 1.1K+ are focused on cutting-edge tech, such as AI, AR/VR, animation, IoT, enterprise solutions, and green technology. 

These entrepreneurs looking to grow their ventures have received incubation support under the iStart Rajasthan initiative. In the recent budget announced by the Rajasthan government in February 2024, it has promised to allocate INR 1,000 Cr for Atal Innovation Studios and Accelerators, which will include software coding, robotic labs and equipment for VFX and multimedia. Besides incubation support, the startups have also received over INR 670 Cr as additional venture capital funding. 

The state government has also established RCAT (Rajiv Gandhi Centre of Advance Technology) to impart IT skills to students and mid-career professionals and create career opportunities, steering an innovative model in IT education. 

As such, iStart Rajasthan is playing a pivotal role in supporting the diverse range of startups and positioning Rajasthan as a vibrant startup hub.