StartUps Grew 300 Times in Last 9 Years: Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh
11 April 2023: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh said that StartUps in India have grown 300 times in last 9 years.
Dr. Jitendra Singh was speaking at a function at Rashtrapati Bhavan where “National Innovation Awards”, instituted by Union Ministry of Science & Technology, were presented to “Grassroot Innovators” by President of India, Droupadi Murmu.
The Minister said that there were just around 350 StartUps before 2014, but after Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave the clarion call from the ramparts of Red Fort in his Independence Day address in 2016, there has been a quantum jump in StartUps to more than 90,000 with more than 100 Unicorns.
Dr. Jitendra Singh further added that simultaneously Prime Minister Modi opened up the Space sector for private participation leading to more than 100 StartUps in Space sector within just about three years. Similarly, Biotech StartUps went up from around 50 to nearly 6,000 he said.
The Minister mentioned that nature of the awards presented and the profile of the awardees proves that a large number of “Grassroot Innovators” are available in India who may not have a very high formal education but who are capable of creating success stories and also generating attractive means of livelihoods for themselves.
Dr. Jitendra Singh appreciated the efforts of the Department of Science and Technology and National Innovation Foundation (NIF) for organising the “Festival of Innovation & Entrepreneurship” (FINE) and noted that it is a unique effort to promote Science, Technology and Innovation even among those who may not be highly educated in the formal sense or may have not even be science students but who possess inherent talent and inborn aptitude for innovation and entrepreneurship, which also may become a source of livelihood for them.
