The government is encouraging large companies to work with start-ups to deal with business challenges and problems as this will encourage the growth of budding entrepreneurs, said a senior official on Friday.
Secretary in the Department of Industrial Promotion and Internal Trade (DPIIT) Amardeep Singh Bhatia also said that measures like the abolition of angel tax are helping startups to come back and register their firms in India.
“Big companies may have enough work on their hands, and if they face any problems, instead of pulling more resources, they may prefer to work with someone outside the company to solve the problem. So in that, we are pushing you to work with you first,” Bhatia told reporters here.
A number of big companies have come forward and signed MoUs, he added.
The firms shared challenges with startups such as developing new processes in which glass can be sealed and new PCB manufacturing technologies.
“We hope that in the 10th year (of the Startup India program), we will be able to push private businesses and companies to start working more closely with startups, in the way of outsourcing some of the jobs to startups, collaborating with them to bring new products, providing them with help in the way of teaching, access to labs and testing areas,” he added.
The secretary said the department is also looking at greater integration between Indian startups and global markets.
“What we want is for startups to connect with foreign companies where they will be able to disclose their problems to startups. We want that connection,” said Bhatia.
When asked about the type of possible cooperation with foreign countries, he said that some of these countries have large private and investment funds, and some of these funds would like to look at opportunities to invest in Indian startups.
Addressing a press conference, DPIIT Joint Secretary Sanjiv said that Saudi Arabia has shown interest in participating in the Startup Mahakumbh, scheduled for April.
The Ministry has urged companies to issue orders and increase procurement since the start, he said.
“This year, we plan to have 75 challenges where companies will ask questions, and share problem statements. The emphasis is that startups will find work in them, and they can be part of a chain of big companies,” said Sanjiv. .
He went on to say that all manufacturing companies have been asked to come out with some problems so that they can share with businessmen.
He informed that the Department of Business Affairs has fast-tracked the process of startups who want to go abroad and register in India.
“It’s good that reverse flipping is happening,” he said.
To promote innovation and entrepreneurship, the government launched the Startup India program on January 16, 2016.
DPIIT has identified around 1.5 lakh organizations as startups.
Under the Startup India programme, the government is running three flagship schemes — Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS), Start-up Funding Fund (FFS) and Seed Credit Guarantee Scheme (CGSS) — to support startups at various stages. their business cycle.
SISFS provides financial assistance to seed stage startups through incubators.
The FFS was established to encourage business investment and is operated by the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), which provides capital to SEBI-Registered Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs), which, in turn, invest in startups.
CGSS is used to enable unsecured loans to startups recognized by DPIIT through relevant financial institutions. Operated by National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company Ltd on a trial basis from 1 April 2023.