India's Booming Startup Ecosystem: A Breakthrough Year

India surpassed 2 lakh government-recognised startups, with 44,000 emerging this year. Nearly half feature female leadership and have created over 21 lakh jobs. The Startup India initiative has spurred significant investments and provided substantial financial support via various schemes to foster growth.

New Delhi, Dec 12 (PTI)—India has reached a significant milestone with more than 2 lakh government-recognised startups now established in the country. This year alone, over 44,000 entities have been recognized, marking the largest annual increase since the Startup India initiative began, announced Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday.

The Startup India initiative, launched in 2016, offers several benefits to recognized units, including income tax relief. Impressively, almost 48% of these startups include at least one woman director or partner, said Goyal in a social media update. This initiative has collectively facilitated the creation of more than 21 lakh direct jobs.

Substantial capital has flowed into these enterprises, with Rs 25,320 crore invested by Alternative Investment Funds under the Fund of Funds for Startups Scheme. Additionally, Rs 775 crore has been granted under the Credit Guarantee Scheme, and over Rs 585 crore has been approved to more than 3,200 startup applications through incubators as part of the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme. This year, startups filed more than 16,400 new patent applications.

(With inputs from agencies.)