Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal on Monday pushed for the creation of a comprehensive database of all startups in the country.
Such a database will help both the public and the private sectors to source goods and services from startups in a more vigorous way, thus creating more business opportunities for these entities, he said. It will also lead to greater integration of startups with the broader business ecosystem in the country.
Goyal was speaking at the National Startup Awards function (2022) function here.
While the department for the promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT) maintains a strong database of startups, which has been expanding at a rapid pace in recent years, many of these entities are still not registered with it.
41 startups get awards
As many as 41 startups, two incubators and one accelerator were awarded by Goyal at the latest edition of the awards function. Some of these winners have emerged from tier-2 and tier-3 cities from states, including Maharashtra, Telangana, Odisha and Kerala. Startups in the health and wellness category grabbed the maximum number of awards (6), followed by those in industry 4.0 (5), agriculture and education & skill development (4 each), fintech, enterprise technology and energy (3 each), media & entertainment, construction, transportation and security (2 each).
Fruvetech and Wolkus and Technology Solutions (agriculture), Nextscm Solutions (enterprise technology), Whrrl Fintech and Changejar Technologies (Fintech), Medulance Healthcare and Mallipathra Nutraceutical (health and wellness) were among those who bagged the awards.
The awards acknowledge start-ups and enablers who have been “instrumental in revolutionising the development story of India” and have had “measurable impact on society”.
A total of 2,667 applications were received from start-ups, incubators, and accelerators from 31 states and union territories across the country, according to a commerce ministry statement. These applications were screened and evaluated by more than 50 jury members, who included senior government officials, venture capitalists, start-up CEOs, industry veterans and renowned educationists.