Lok Sabha Question No. 2813 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2023-12-20
Subject: Startup Ecosystem
Ministry: COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
Asked by: Dushyant Singh

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY DEPARTMENT FOR PROMOTION OF INDUSTRY AND INTERNAL TRADE

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2813.

TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, THE 20 TH  DECEMBER, 2023.

## STARTUP ECOSYSTEM

## 2813. SHRI DUSHYANT SINGH:

Will the Minister of COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY be pleased to state:

## वाणिज्य एवं उद्योग मंत्री

- (a) whether the Ministry is planning to create single implementing body for the entire startup ecosystem, if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether the Ministry is taking any endeavour to decentralize and extend the startup ecosystem beyond major districts, i.e. in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities of the country;
- (c) if  so,  the  details  thereof  along  with  district  wise  startups  in  the  State  of Rajasthan; and
- (d) the details of the efforts being made by the Ministry to expand the presence of agri-based startups?

## ANSWER

## वाणिज्य एवं उद्योग मंत्रालय में राज्य मंत्री ( श्री सोम प्रकाश ) THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (SHRI SOM PARKASH)

- (a): The  Government  with  an  intent  to  build  a  strong  ecosystem  for  nurturing innovation, startups and encouraging investments launched the Startup India initiative on 16th January 2016.

The  Government  also  unveiled  a  Startup  India  Action  Plan  comprising  of schemes and incentives envisaged to create a vibrant startup ecosystem in the country.

Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade(DPIIT) by way of the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961 is the Department responsible for matters relating to startups, thereby implements the Startup India initiative  and  coordinates  with  the  concerned  line  ministries  and departments for execution of programs realising the objectives of the Startup India Action Plan.

- (b) & (c): As on 31 st  October 2023, 1,14,902 entities have been recognized as startups under the Startup India initiative. More than 45% of these recognised startups are from tier 2 and 3 cities. The measures implemented under the said initiative are  inclusive  and  are  implemented  across  States/Union  Territories  (UTs), cities,  towns,  and  rural  areas.  The  list  of  such  measures  is  placed  at Annexure-I .

Specifically  for  the  State  of  Rajasthan,  there  are  a  total  of  4,029  DPIIT recognized  startups  as  on  31 st October  2023.  The  district-wise  details  of recognised startups from the State of Rajasthan are placed at Annexure-II.

- (d): The  Government  has  undertaken  various  efforts  under  the  Startup  India initiative to promote startups in the country across multiple sectors. The list of such measures is placed at Annexure-I .

Specifically for startups in agriculture sector, the Government has taken several measures under various programs and initiatives. The details of such measures are placed at Annexure-III .

As a result, there are a total of 6,224 DPIIT recognized agriculture startups in the country as on 31 st     October 2023.

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## ANNEXURE-I

## ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (b) to (d) OF THE LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2813 FOR ANSWER ON 20.12.2023.

The details of various measures undertaken by the Government under the Startup India initiative across the country are as under:

1. Startup India Action Plan: An Action Plan for Startup India was unveiled on 16th January 2016. The Action Plan comprises of 19 action items spanning across areas such as 'Simplification and handholding', 'Funding support and incentives'  and  'Industry-academia  partnership  and  incubation'. The  Action Plan  laid  the  foundation  of  Government  support,  schemes  and  incentives envisaged to create a vibrant startup ecosystem in the country.
2. Startup India: The Way Ahead: Startup India: The Way Ahead at 5 years celebration of Startup India was unveiled on 16th January 2021 which includes actionable plans for promotion of ease of doing business  for startups, greater role of technology  in  executing  various  reforms,  building  capacities  of stakeholders and enabling a digital Aatmanirbhar Bharat.
3. Startup  India  Seed  Fund  Scheme  (SISFS): Easy  availability  of  capital  is essential for entrepreneurs at the early stages of growth of an enterprise. The capital  required  at  this  stage  often  presents  a  make-or-break  situation  for startups  with  good  business  ideas.  The  Scheme  aims  to  provide  financial assistance to startups for proof of concept, prototype development, product trials, market entry and commercialization. Rs. 945 crore has  been   sanctioned under the SISFS Scheme for period of 4 years starting from 2021-  22.
4. Fund  of Funds  for  Startups  (FFS)  Scheme: The  Government  has established FFS with corpus of Rs. 10,000 crore, to meet the funding needs of startups. DPIIT is the monitoring agency and  Small  Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) is the operating agency for FFS. The total            corpus of Rs. 10,000 crore is  envisaged to  be  provided over  the  14th and  15th Finance Commission  cycles  based  on  progress  of  the  scheme  and availability of funds. It has not only made capital available for startups at early   stage, seed stage and growth stage but also played a catalytic role in terms   of facilitating raising  of  domestic  capital,  reducing  dependence  on  foreign  capital  and encouraging home grown and new venture capital funds.
5. Credit  Guarantee  Scheme  for  Startups  (CGSS): The  Government  has established  the  Credit  Guarantee  Scheme  for  Startups  for  providing  credit guarantees  to  loans  extended  to  DPIIT  recognized  startups  by  Scheduled Commercial Banks, Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) and Venture Debt  Funds  (VDFs)  under  SEBI  registered  Alternative  Investment  Funds. CGSS is aimed at providing credit guarantee up to a specified limit against loans extended by Member Institutions (MIs) to finance eligible borrowers viz. DPIIT recognised startups.
6. Regulatory Reforms: Over 55 regulatory reforms have been undertaken by the Government since 2016 to enhance ease of doing business, ease of raising capital and reduce compliance burden for the startup ecosystem.
7. Ease of Procurement: To enable ease of procurement, Central Ministries/ Departments  are  directed  to  relax  conditions  of  prior  turnover  and  prior experience in public procurement for all DPIIT recognised startups subject to meeting quality and technical specifications. Further, Government eMarketplace  (GeM)  also  facilitates  and  promotes  procurement  of  products and services by the Government from startups.
8. Self-Certification  under  Labour  and  Environmental  laws: Startups  are allowed to self-certify their compliance under 9 Labour and 3 Environment laws for a period of 3 to 5 years from the date of incorporation.
9. Income Tax Exemption for 3 years: Startups incorporated on or after 1st April 2016 can apply for income tax exemption. The recognized startups that are granted an Inter-Ministerial Board Certificate are exempted from income- tax for a period of 3 consecutive years out of 10 years since incorporation.
10. Faster Exit for Startups: The Government has notified Startups as  'fast track firms' enabling them to wind up operations within 90 days vis-a-vis 180 days for other companies.
11. Exemption for the Purpose Of Clause (VII)(b) of Sub-section (2) of Section 56 of the Act (2019): A DPIIT recognized startup is eligible for exemption from the provisions of section 56(2)(viib) of the Income Tax Act.
12. Support for Intellectual Property Protection: Startups are eligible for fasttracked patent application  examination  and  disposal.  The  Government launched  Start-ups  Intellectual  Property  Protection  (SIPP)  which  facilitates the startups to file applications for patents, designs and trademarks through registered facilitators in appropriate IP offices by paying only the statutory fees. Facilitators under this Scheme are responsible for providing general advisory on different IPRs, and information on protecting and promoting IPRs in other countries.  The  Government  bears  the  entire  fees  of  the  facilitators  for  any number of patents, trademark or designs, and startups only bear the cost of the statutory fees payable. Startups are provided with an 80% rebate in filing of patents and 50% rebate in filling of trademark vis-a-vis other companies.
13. Startup India Hub: The Government launched a Startup India Online Hub on 19th June 2017 which is one of its kind online platform for all stakeholders of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in India to discover, connect and engage with each  other.  The  Online  Hub  hosts  Startups,  Investors,  Funds,  Mentors, Academic  Institutions,  Incubators,  Accelerators,  Corporates,  Government Bodies and more.
14. International Market Access to Indian Startups: One of the key objectives under the Startup India initiative is to help connect Indian startup ecosystem to global startup ecosystems through various engagement models. This has been  done  though  international  Government  to  Government  partnerships, participation  in  international  forums  and  hosting  of  global  events.  Startup India  has  launched  bridges  with  20  countries  that  provides  a  soft-landing platform  for  startups  from  the  partner  nations  and  aid  in  promoting  cross collaboration.
15. Startup  India  Showcase: Startup  India  Showcase  is  an  online  discovery platform for the most promising startups of the country chosen  through various programs  for  startups  exhibited  in  a  form  of  virtual  profiles.  The startups showcased on the platform have distinctly emerged as the best in their fields. These innovations span across various cutting-edge sectors such as Fintech, EnterpriseTech,  Social  Impact,  HealthTech,  EdTech,  among  others.  These startups are solving critical problems and have shown exceptional innovation in  their  respective  sectors.  Ecosystem  stakeholders  have  nurtured  and supported these startups, thereby  validating  their  presence on this platform.
16. National  Startup  Advisory  Council: The  Government  in  January  2020 notified  constitution  of  the  National  Startup  Advisory  Council  to  advise  the Government on measures needed to build a strong ecosystem for nurturing innovation and startups in the country to drive sustainable economic growth and  generate  large  scale  employment  opportunities.  Besides  the  ex-officio members, the Council has a number of non-official  members,  representing various stakeholders from the startup ecosystem.
17. National Startup Awards (NSA): National Startup Awards is an initiative to recognize and reward outstanding startups and ecosystem enablers that are building innovative products or solutions and scalable enterprises, with high potential of  employment generation or wealth creation, demonstrating measurable social impact. Handholding support is provided to all the finalists across various tracks viz. Investor Connect, Mentorship, Corporate Connect, Government  Connect,  International  Market  Access,  Regulatory  Support, Startup Champions on Doordarshan and Startup India Showcase, etc.
18. States'  Startup  Ranking  Framework  (SRF): States' Startup  Ranking Framework is a unique initiative to harness strength of competitive federalism and create a flourishing startup ecosystem in the country. The major objectives of the ranking exercise are facilitating states to identify, learn and replace good practices, highlighting the policy intervention by states for promoting startup ecosystem and fostering competitiveness among states.
19. Startup  Champions  on  Doordarshan: Startup  Champions  program  on Doordarshan is a one-hour weekly program covering stories of  award winning/ nationally recognised startups. It is telecasted in both Hindi and English across Doordarshan network channels.
20. Startup  India  Innovation  Week: The  Government organises  Startup  India Innovation week around the National Startup Day i.e., 16th January, with the primary goal was to bring together the country's key startups, entrepreneurs, investors, incubators, funding entities, banks, policymakers, and other national/international stakeholders to celebrate entrepreneurship and promote innovation.
21. ASCEND: Under  ASCEND  (Accelerating  Startup  Caliber  &  Entrepreneurial Drive),  sensitization  workshops  on  startups  and  entrepreneurship  were conducted for all eight North Eastern States with the objective to capacitate and  augment  knowledge  on  key  aspects  of  entrepreneurship  and  continue efforts towards creating a robust startup ecosystem in these States.
22. The Startup India Investor Connect Portal has been co-developed under the Startup India Initiative with SIDBI, serving as an intermediary platform that        links startups and investors in order to help entrepreneurs from various industries, functions, stages, regions and backgrounds in mobilizing capital. The portal has been built with the aim to enable in particular; early-stage startups located anywhere in the country to showcase themselves to leading investors/ venture capital funds.
23. National Mentorship Portal (MAARG) :  In  order  to  facilitate  accessibility  to mentorship for startups in every part of the country, the Mentorship, Advisory, Assistance, Resilience and Growth (MAARG) program has been developed and launched under the Startup India Initiative.
24. Sapno ki Udaan Campaign: It  was  conceptualised  and  launched  to  target districts with limited recognised startups. This included outreach to these areas in  the  form  of  emailers,  social  media  posts,  along  with  state  support  for outreach.
25. Startup India Yatra initiative: It was also launched with an aim to reach tier 2  and  tier  3  cities  of  India  to  search  for  entrepreneurial  talent  and  to  help develop the startup ecosystem around them. Entrepreneurs were scouted from non-metropolitan cities and provided with a platform for them to pursue their aspirations through incubation and mentorship from renowned institutions and fulfilling the need for such resources in their region.

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## ANNEXURE-II

## ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (b) and (c) OF THE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2813 FOR ANSWER ON 20.12.2023.

District-wise  details  of  recognised  startups  in  the  State  of  Rajasthan,  as  on 31 st October 2023 are as follows:

| S. No.   | Districts      | Number of DPIIT recognized startups   |
|----------|----------------|---------------------------------------|
| 1.       | Ajmer          | 165                                   |
| 2.       | Alwar          | 157                                   |
| 3.       | Banswara       | 18                                    |
| 4.       | Baran          | 8                                     |
| 5.       | Barmer         | 35                                    |
| 6.       | Bharatpur      | 24                                    |
| 7.       | Bhilwara       | 66                                    |
| 8.       | Bikaner        | 82                                    |
| 9.       | Bundi          | 14                                    |
| 10.      | Chittorgarh    | 46                                    |
| 11.      | Churu          | 33                                    |
| 12.      | Dausa          | 18                                    |
| 13.      | Dholpur        | 17                                    |
| 14.      | Dungarpur      | 17                                    |
| 15.      | Ganganagar     | 32                                    |
| 16.      | Hanumangarh    | 40                                    |
| 17.      | Jaipur         | 2,188                                 |
| 18.      | Jaisalmer      | 4                                     |
| 19.      | Jalore         | 12                                    |
| 20.      | Jhalawar       | 14                                    |
| 21.      | Jhunjhunu      | 64                                    |
| 22.      | Jodhpur        | 302                                   |
| 23.      | Karauli        | 15                                    |
| 24.      | Kota           | 171                                   |
| 25.      | Nagaur         | 46                                    |
| 26.      | Pali           | 45                                    |
| 27.      | Rajsamand      | 16                                    |
| 28.      | Sawai Madhopur | 18                                    |
| 29.      | Sikar          | 52                                    |
| 30.      | Sirohi         | 28                                    |
| 31.      | Tonk           | 15                                    |
| 32.      | Udaipur        | 266                                   |
| 33.      | Not Specified  | 1                                     |
|          | TOTAL          | 4,029                                 |

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## ANNEXURE  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PART  (d) OF  THE  LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2813 FOR ANSWER ON 20.12.2023.

The  details  of  various  programs  undertaken  by  the  Government  to  promote  agristartups are as under:

1.  Steps being taken under the Startup India initiative:
- i. A dedicated  sector  team  for  startups  in  the  agriculture  sector  has  been established which assists startups by hosting mentorship sessions.
- ii. The  dedicated  sector  team  for  Agriculture  startups  is  also involved in mapping relevant stakeholders and identifying new schemes and/or policies that could potentially be relevant for startups working in this sector.
- iii. The  National  Startup  Awards  (NSA)has  multiple  categories  to  recognise agri-  startups.  For  NSA  2021,agri-startups  could  participate  in  several categories such as: (i) Irrigation  (ii) Farmer Education and Engagement  (iii) Post- harvest and (iv) Productivity. Additionally, NSA 2023 introduced a new category to encourage innovation in agriculture startups, namely, 'Innovators for Agriculture and Animal Husbandry'.
2. National Agriculture Innovation Fund: Implemented by the India Council of Agricultural  Research  (ICAR),  promotes  the  startups  related  to  agriculture under Incubation activities in ICAR Network wherein it has established Agribusiness Incubator (ABIs) centres in 50 Institutes across the country. These ABIs  are  provided  infrastructure  for  agricultural  technology  incubation  and skill up-gradation, leading to promotion of viable enterprises and sustainable start-up  business  operations  such  as  business  planning;  office  space;  and advice on management, marketing, technical and financial issues; and shared resources, equipment and technical support services. Also  provides facilitation for technical validation, mentoring and technical backstopping to the agriculture startups.
3. RKVY-RAFTAAR: Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer's Welfare is implementing the 'Innovation and Agri-Entrepreneurship Development' programme under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana-Remunerative Approaches for Agriculture  and  Allied Sector  Rejuvenation  (RKVY-RAFTAAR) from 2018-19 with an objective to promote innovation and agri-entrepreneurship by   providing financial  support  and  nurturing  the  incubation  ecosystem  in  the  country. Startups  under  the  programme  are  taking  up  projects  in  various        fields of agriculture and allied sectors like Agro-processing, Food Technology and Value Addition,  Artificial  Intelligence  (AI),  Internet  of  Things  (IoT),  Information  and Communication Technology (ICT), Block Chain Technology (BCT), precision farming, and Digital agriculture among others.

Under the programme, technical and financial support is provided  to potential startups to launch their products, services, business platforms, etc and facilitate them  to  scale  up  their  products  and  operations  to  attain  business  viability. Startups are trained and incubated at RKVY Agribusiness Incubator (R-ABI) centres appointed under the programme.

4. Biotechnology  Industry  Research  Assistance  Council  (BIRAC): The Department of  Biotechnology through its specialized central enabling agency is supporting startups and entrepreneurs in the biotech sector including healthcare (medical devices, diagnostics, biopharma, vaccines, gene therapy, others),  Agritech  solutions,  Nutrition  and  Food  security,  Clean  energy  and Environment,  Enzymes  and  Biofuels  etc.  BIRAC  has  created  a  strong ecosystem and support mechanism across the country to facilitate startups and entrepreneurs in the biotech sector.
5. Kisan Mela: The Department of Agriculture and Farmer's Welfare (DA&FW) has been organizing Kisan Mela at different location inviting participation from agri-startups.  Such  event  provides  opportunities  to  agriculture  startups  to showcase their business idea to the farmers. Such event offers a platform for exchange of ideas between various key stakeholders including central & state government officials, startups, FPOs, Farmers, Academicians, as well as agribusiness incubators.  Agri-startups can network with stakeholders, market their innovations, and interact and seek funding from investors at this event. This event provides an opportunity to startups to learn from  their  peer startups and shared ideas in supporting the farmers.
6. Agriculture Grand Challenge: A grand challenge was organized by Startup India and Ministry of Agriculture to encourage new concepts and innovations in different areas. The objective was to support the technology base by   funding the best fundamental concepts while helping talented and creative innovations to pursue promising avenues at the frontier of the technology.
7. Domain specific Centres of Excellence (CoEs): Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has operationalised CoEs in diverse areas of national interest for driving self-sufficiency and creating  capabilities  to capture new  and  emerging  technology  areas.  These  domain  specific  CoEs  act as enablers and aid in making India an innovation hub through democratisation of innovation and realisation of prototypes.

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