Startup India for driving innovation and economic growth

The government of India recognises the importance of startups in driving innovation and economic growth. The Government departments related to various ministries have introduced schemes to provide financial, infrastructural, and regulatory support to startups. The startup schemes cover sectors like technology, manufacturing, agriculture, healthcare, and more.

The Startup India scheme is based majorly on three pillars. They are;

1. Providing funding support and incentives to the various start-ups of the country.
2. To provide Industry-Academia Partnership and Incubation.
3. Simplification and Handholding.

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) through the Startup India initiative has executed various projects & undertaken recurring models to propel the Indian Startup Ecosystem. The scheme provides grants, technical guidance, and mentoring to individual innovators by incubating their ideas towards the creation of new enterprises in phases. It also provides grant-in-aid support to technology solution providers developing technology solutions aimed at helping MSME clusters.

Some of the important startup schemes are as follows;

• High Risk – High Reward Research
• Promoting Innovations in Individuals, Startups and MSMEs (PRISM)
• NewGen Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Centre
• Assistance to Professional Bodies & Seminars/ Symposia
• Extra Mural Research Funding
• Technology Development Programme
• Drugs and Pharmaceutical Research
• Small Business Innovation Research Initiative (SBIRI)
• Biotechnology Ignition Grant
• Biotechnology Industry Partnership Programme (BIPP)

Each scheme’s details, including objectives, and benefits, are provided on related ministries’ websites. Eligible startups can be exempted from paying income tax for 3 consecutive financial years out of their first ten years since incorporation.

Eligibility Criteria: Any Indian citizen aged 18 or above can apply for the scheme. Should work towards the development or improvement of a product, process, or service and/or have a scalable business model with high potential for the creation of wealth & employment. Apart from the general eligibility criteria, the Government of India has specific requirements for startup recognition, which include:

Company’s age: The period of existence and operations should not exceed 10 years from the Date of Incorporation.

Company’s type: Incorporated as a Private Limited Company, a Registered Partnership Firm, or a Limited Liability Partnership.

Annual turnover: Should have an annual turnover not exceeding Rs. 100 crore for any of the financial years since its Incorporation

Note: Entity should not have been formed by splitting up or reconstructing an already existing business.

Contemplating the role of this sector in Employment generation, promotion of entrepreneurship, regional development, export promotion, innovation, reduction of income disparities, and support for large industries, the Government of India along with the Reserve Bank of India launched the following initiatives.

MSME Samadhaan,

Atmanirbhar Bharat,

Udyog Aadhaar, 

Mudra,

ZED scheme,

Make in India

Stand up India,

Startup India,

Udyam Assist Platform

The below schemes help businesses in the MSME sector and are expected to contribute largely to India’s economic growth.

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