Startups are the agents of change and pillars for Making India Aatmanirbhar: Piyush Goyal

13 Jan 2022 , 01:37 PM

Piyush Goyal, Minister of Textiles, Minister of Commerce and Industry and Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Government of India, has said, “Our startups are the agents of change as well as the pillars for making India aatmanirbhar. In barely three years, more than six lakh jobs were created by our startups.”

“Last year alone, two lakh jobs were created. Startups will help India transition from an assembly economy to a knowledge-based economy,” he said while addressing the valedictory session at the 16th edition of India Digital Summit 2022, organised by IAMAI.

He mentioned that 2021 has showcased to the world that India is rising as the world’s favourite startup destination, with 43 startups achieving the status of unicorns in one calendar year. Since the start of India Startup Mission, six years ago, we have already produced 82 unicorns, the world’s third-largest number of unicorns, and have over 60,000 startups registered at DPIIT and there’s a growing recognition of our skilled people, with investors queuing up from around the world to come and participate in this revolution.

He also highlighted that our potential has barely touched the tip of the ice berg and currently the focus is on ease of living, ease of service, and ease of skilling — reskilling and upskilling and the government is acting as a facilitator.  The government has taken a number of steps to strengthen the startup story like — 80% rebate on patent filing fees, 50% on trademark filing fees, relaxation of public procurement norms, seed fund schemes, income-tax exemptions, etc. All these steps have brought in simplification, facilitation and empowerment for our entrepreneurs, he added.

The two -day summit, which concluded yesterday, saw about 2,000 delegates participating at the event. The summit saw over 45 sessions, 150 speakers, 500 brands.