The formulation of guidelines for the rolling out of the second phase of the fund of funds (FoF) scheme for startups is almost at an advanced stage and will be implemented soon, once it gets the clearance from the Cabinet, said Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday.
As India marked the 10 year anniversary of the National Startup India Day, deep tech and high-tech sectors such as defence, space, and aerospace have become the major focus of the government, where they are pushing for more entrepreneurial zeal among youth, stated the Minister while addressing the media. “It has been announced in the Budget. There will be a need for a cabinet approval. It is a very advanced stage,” said Piyush Goyal. The government first launched FoF of Rs 10000 crore in 2016 to boost the start-up ecosystem with an aim to provide seed capital and handhold start-ups in different sectors. After the utilization of the first tranche, second tranche of another Rs 10,000 crore was announced in the previous Union Budget.
The minister further assured that the government is taking all possible measures to boost the start-up ecosystem, and thus, start-ups have been given a preferential treatment for several procurement too. Defence, railways and IT ministry have supported the start-ups by giving orders to them. Considering the growth trajectory of the start-up ecosystem in India , the Minister said that he is optimistic that in the next few years , around 10 lakh start-ups will be established across the country from various sectors and will create more than 1 crore jobs in the coming decade.
Currently, over 2 lakh entities are recognised as startups by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).