Government will support startups, entrepreneurs in most-challenging initial risk phase, says Ashwini Vaishnaw, Union IT Minister

The Indian government will support startups and entrepreneurs in the most difficult phase, or the risk stage, which is a period when angel investors, venture capitalists, and institutional funds may not be willing to risk their time and money, said Ashwini Vaishnaw, Union IT Minister.

While India has a network of accelerators and incubators, he believes that for a country of 130 crores, 200 incubators aren't enough. To this extent, the government plans to scale the network of incubators and accelerators to grow up by 40X.

Speaking on the launch of MeitY-NASSCOM Startup Women Entrepreneurs Awards 2020-2021, in partnership with UN Women, he said,

"That's what we are implementing; we will continue to implement and scale it up to a totally different level."

"Out of 100 entrepreneurs, if 20 are able to scale and succeed, it will be a big journey for the country. We are looking at millions of entrepreneurs to create more jobs and to make their mark, leading to many more awards like this and grow to levels to make our country proud and satisfied," he added.

The Minister further emphasised that in case of startups, PM Narendra Modi’s vision is very clear.

“To serve 1.3 billion people, India will scale up the network of incubators and accelerators to phenomenal levels in the next three years. They will be housed in institutions, industries, and places where they add real value,” he said.

ALSO READ

Women entrepreneurship is creating new waves across key sectors