National Startup Day celebrated annually on January 16 commemorates the role of startups in driving entrepreneurship, innovation, technology, self-reliance and collaboration between different stakeholders including investors, mentors, government, and more. Declared by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2022 to mark the Startup India initiative launched by the government on January 16, 2016, the day underscores the growth of Indian startups over the past decade and more.
As India marks the ninth anniversary of its Startup India initiative in the form of National Startup Day, the country’s startup ecosystem, which is the third largest in the world with over 1.6 lakh government-recognised startups, has emerged as a powerful engine for economic development. The enterprises have created over 1.6 million jobs across the country, according to the data from the commerce ministry.
Startup India’s benefits
Under the Startup India initiative, startups need to register with the Commerce Ministry’s Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) to access a host of benefits such as self-certification allowed for labour laws and environmental laws, facilitation costs for patents borne by the government, rebate in patent filing, tax exemption under section 80IAC, exemption from Angel tax, ease in winding up the company, and easier public procurement norms.
“When Startup India launched nine years ago. India had ten Unicorns. Today. India has over 110 Unicorns. Just five years ago, India didn’t have a single venture-funded startup that was publicly listed with over $10 Billion market cap. Today, we have five companies over that number. including Zomato at a $30B market cap. Info Edge. MakeMyTrip. Swiggy and PolicyBazaar are all over $10B public market cap. We are in a very different ecosystem today and India’s future looks very bright,” said Rajan Anandan, Managing Director, Peak XV & Surge and Co-Chair, VC Council, IVCA.
Impact
As of January 13, 2025, over 4,000 startups were funded under Startup India’s Fund of Funds programme. Moreover, the number of unicorns has surged around over 110.
In addition, initiatives such as the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) and the National Initiative for Developing and Harnessing Innovations (NIDHI) under Startup India provide infrastructure and financial support to startups.
Moreover, the Startup Accelerator of MeitY (IT Ministry) for Product Innovation, Development, and Growth (SAMRIDH) scheme launched in 2021, aims to support 300 software product startups over four years with an outlay of Rs 99 crore, providing funding up to Rs 40 lakh per startup through accelerators to scale their businesses.
Who can register
Startups looking to register with DPIIT need to be operational for not more than 10 years from the date of incorporation. Also, the company should be incorporated as a private limited company or a registered partnership firm or a limited liability partnership with an annual turnover not exceeding Rs 100 crore for any of the financial years since its Incorporation.
As part of the celebrations this year, the government along with the startup alliance Startup Policy Forum (SPF) is organising SPF Baithak, gathering founders and policymakers on January 15-16 at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi.
According to the government, the event would announce new collaborations between DPIIT and SPF members. Moreover, SPF will partner with DPIIT to organize specialized immersive programs, enabling global investors to engage with Indian startups.