National Startup Day to reflect on India’s startup rise and next growth phase
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will participate in a special programme on Friday to commemorate a decade of the Startup India initiative, where he is scheduled to interact with founders, investors, and ecosystem leaders from across the country.
Launched on January 16, 2016, Startup India was conceived as a national mission to promote entrepreneurship, innovation, and investment-led growth. Over the past ten years, the initiative has played a decisive role in transforming India into one of the world’s most dynamic startup ecosystems.
India’s startup ecosystem at 10
Since its launch, Startup India has enabled the recognition of over 1.2 lakh startups, making India the third-largest startup ecosystem globally. These startups span sectors such as fintech, SaaS, deeptech, healthtech, climate tech, space tech, and manufacturing, reflecting a broad-based innovation push beyond metro cities.
The initiative has also contributed to the creation of over 10 lakh direct jobs, with many more indirect roles emerging across supply chains, services, and platform-led businesses.
Capital, innovation, and global scale
India’s startups have collectively raised over $150 billion in venture capital since 2016, producing more than 110 unicorns. Policy measures such as tax exemptions, simplified compliance, faster patent processing, and the Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS) have helped improve access to early-stage capital and reduce friction for founders.
Indian startups are now scaling globally, with many exporting technology, services, and consumer brands to international markets, strengthening India’s position as a global innovation hub.
Focus on the next decade
At the National Startup Day event, discussions are expected to focus on the next phase of growth, including deeptech commercialisation, manufacturing-led startups, AI adoption, climate innovation, and global competitiveness. Founder feedback and policy alignment are likely to shape how India supports startups through their scale-up and global expansion journeys.
The milestone underscores the government’s continued emphasis on startups as engines of employment, innovation, and long-term economic resilience.
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