Empowering Entrepreneurs: Top 5 Government Schemes Fuelling India’s Startup Ecosystem”

In the current surge of startups, India has emerged as the 3^rd largest ecosystem for startups globally with over 1,12,718 DPIIT-recognized startups across 763 districts of the country as of 03rd October 2023. Among these, 107 are classed as unicorn companies, valued at $30 billion.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s initiatives have played a pivotal role in nurturing this robust startup ecosystem, offering support and incentives to budding entrepreneurs.

1. Atal Innovation Mission (AIM): Launched in 2016, AIM fosters innovation by introducing programs and policies to assist startups across various economic sectors. With a funding pool of approximately Rs 10 crores over five years, AIM supports emerging organizations in health, agriculture, education, transportation, and more.

2. Multiplier Grant Scheme (MGS): Initiated by the Department of Electronics and Information Technology, MGS empowers collaborative research and development in industries. The government provides a maximum of Rs 2 crore per project for durations of less than two years, facilitating the growth of goods and services.

3. Dairy Entrepreneurship Development Scheme (DEDS): Launched by the Department of Animal Husbandry, Fisheries, and Dairying, DEDS focuses on creating self-employment in the dairy sector. It offers back-end capital for bankable projects, covering 25% of the total project cost for general category candidates and 33.33% for SC/ST category farms.

4. Startup India Initiative: A popular and impactful scheme, the Startup India Initiative offers tax benefits to entrepreneurs for up to five years. With 114,458 startups recognized by the DPIIT, this initiative supports startups up to 7 years old (10 years for biotechnology companies) from their date of establishment.

5. Startup India Seed Fund Scheme: Introduced in January 2021, this scheme aims to assist early-stage startups. Selected entrepreneurs receive funding of Rs 5 crore, with support up to Rs 20 lakhs for concept development and demonstrations, and up to Rs 50 lakhs for product or service growth. Over 1,000 startups have already benefited, receiving more than Rs 177 crore under this scheme.