Inspiring a whole generation of startup entrepreneurs, PM Narendra Modi style

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's historic Startup Action Plan, released on Saturday, has the whole nation abuzz. India tops the list of countries searching “how to startup” on Google, followed by USA, Australia, Canada and UK.

The action plan, released as the culmination of a day-long celebration of startups in New Delhi on January 16^th, has some historic announcements ranging from startups being allowed to self-certify compliance with labour and environment laws to the promise of a mobile app based startup registration process and setting up a Fund of Funds with a corpus of Rs 10,000 crore.

Read more: All you need to know about PM Modi’s historic Startup Action Plan

Reactions have ranged from the ecstatic to the more pragmatic. In a tweet on Saturday, Vujay Shekhar Sharma, Founder and CEO of Paytm, said: “…Our PM ‪@narendramodi delivered 110 on expectations of 100.”

In a guest piece for YourStory startup expert Sanjay Anandram said, “This Startup Action Policy flatters only to deceive. The reluctance of the state to disengage from the culture of command and control shines through.”

In another guest post by Rohit Lohade, Co-founder at Business Setup, said that according to his estimate over 60% of startups will not be eligible for tax exemption.

However, all experts and entrepreneurs are happy that a start has been made. Like K Vaitheeswaran, Founder of e-commerce pioneer IndiaPlaza, said: “The government has done more to glamourise starting up through the glittering Startup India event in Delhi than thousands of panel discussions and newspaper editorials ever could.”

All those present at the Startup India event on Saturday also agree that PM Modi’s speech was inspirational for entrepreneurs. It was a speech laced with the Prime Minister’s characteristic earthy humour, with statements like: “When I heard Ritesh (Aggarwal of Oyo) speak, I thought how a tea seller like me didn’t think of setting up a hotel chain.” Watch the unveiling of the action plan and the full speech here: