Housing 4,200 new-age firms, India is currently ranked as the 3rd biggest start-up ecosystem in the world behind the US and the UK.

The Union government, in a bid to provide further impetus to this burgeoning sector, unveiled on 16 January its ambitious "Start-up India" campaign to encourage budding entrepreneurs in the country.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he wishes to turn the youth of India from job-seekers to job-creators. If a start-up can offer employment to even five people, it would be doing a great service to the nation, Modi said, adding further that some of the areas where youth innovators should focus include crop wastage and cyber security.

In his hour-long speech, Modi listed out the action plan to encourage youths to take the path of entrepreneurship. The Government of India is offering sops such as rebate in patents fees, tax exemptions and simplified procedures to start and exit the company and much more.

Here are top initiatives of Start-up India campaign: 

  • Start-up India hub: To help facilitate quick set-up of start-ups, government has created a single window to get all the necessary approvals.
  • Funds set up for start-ups: A corpus fund of Rs 10,000 crore has been provided to help entrepreneurs start up a company.
  • Self-certification: Self-monitoring based compliance system for start-ups would be introduced for nine labour and environment laws.
  • Patent protection and application facilitation: The government has assured that the start-up firms who set up business after 1 April, 2016, will be able get 80% rebate while applying for patents and will also get free legal help in filing them.
  • Tax Exemptions and Credit Guarantee scheme: The government has assured that the new start-ups will get 100% tax rebate for a period of three years and also get credit guarantee via National Credit Guarantee Trust Company/SIDBI. The government has allocated Rs 500 crore per annum for the next four years for this purpose.
  • Quick exit scheme: The government has also assured to bring a new bill in the upcoming budget session on exit policy for the start-ups to be able to cease from business within 90 days. 
  • Atal Innovation Mission (AIM): This initiative set up under NITI Ayog is an Innovation Promotion Platform involving academics, entrepreneurs and researchers, drawing upon national and international experiences to foster a culture of innovation and R&D in India. The platform will also promote a network of world-class innovation hubs and grand challenges for India.
  • Set up of seven research parks: The government plans to build seven research parks in six IITs and one in IISc (Bengaluru), each costing Rs 100 crores, and similar to the one in IIT- Madras. Additionally, the government is planning to set up 31 innovation centres, 13 start-up centres and 18 technology business incubators.
  • Core innovation programmes in school: To inculcate entrepreneurial skills in children, the government will organise fests across the country to award Rs 10 lakh monitory benefits to 20 bright students. Under the programme Uchhattar Avishkar Yojana, the central government has earmarked 250 crores per annum for next four years.
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