The Government of India has infused more than ₹3,100 crore into women-led startups over the past six years, underscoring its growing focus on promoting female entrepreneurship and innovation. The funding has been channelled through three flagship initiatives the Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS), the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS), and the Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups (CGSS) according to data shared by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal highlighted that India is now home to over two lakh government-recognised startups, with nearly 48% having at least one woman founder, director, or partner. He noted that 2025 marked a record year, with more than 44,000 startups recognised, the highest since the launch of the Startup India initiative in 2016.
Under the FFS scheme, alternate investment funds (AIFs) backed by the government invested approximately ₹2,838.9 crore in 154 women-led startups between 2020 and October 2025. Maharashtra attracted the highest investment in 2025 at ₹277.05 crore, followed by Karnataka (₹264.99 crore) and Goa (₹119.99 crore). Overall, the FFS has facilitated investments exceeding ₹25,320 crore across more than 1,350 startups.
The SISFS scheme, which supports seed stage ventures through incubators, has approved ₹284.79 crore for 1,635 women-led startups since its implementation in April 2021. In total, the scheme has disbursed over ₹775 crore, with Maharashtra alone receiving ₹5.8 crore for women-led startups in 2025.
Meanwhile, the CGSS, launched in April 2023 to enable collateral-free loans, has guaranteed nearly ₹33.17 crore in loans for women entrepreneurs as of October 2025.
Goyal added that startups are also making strides in innovation, filing over 16,400 patent applications, while more than 34,800 startups have been onboarded on the GeM portal, expanding market access and growth opportunities.
The Government of India has infused more than ₹3,100 crore into women-led startups over the past six years, underscoring its growing focus on promoting female entrepreneurship and innovation. The funding has been channelled through three flagship initiatives the Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS), the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS), and the Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups (CGSS) according to data shared by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal highlighted that India is now home to over two lakh government recognised startups, with nearly 48% having at least one woman founder, director, or partner. He noted that 2025 marked a record year, with more than 44,000 startups recognised, the highest since the launch of the Startup India initiative in 2016.
Under the FFS scheme, alternate investment funds (AIFs) backed by the government invested approximately ₹2,838.9 crore in 154 women-led startups between 2020 and October 2025. Maharashtra attracted the highest investment in 2025 at ₹277.05 crore, followed by Karnataka (₹264.99 crore) and Goa (₹119.99 crore). Overall, the FFS has facilitated investments exceeding ₹25,320 crore across more than 1,350 startups.
The SISFS scheme, which supports seed-stage ventures through incubators, has approved ₹284.79 crore for 1,635 women-led startups since its implementation in April 2021. In total, the scheme has disbursed over ₹775 crore, with Maharashtra alone receiving ₹5.8 crore for women-led startups in 2025.
Meanwhile, the CGSS, launched in April 2023 to enable collateral-free loans, has guaranteed nearly ₹33.17 crore in loans for women entrepreneurs as of October 2025.
Goyal added that startups are also making strides in innovation, filing over 16,400 patent applications, while more than 34,800 startups have been onboarded on the GeM portal, expanding market access and growth opportunities.
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