India: Delhi to launch scheme to woo startups

The Delhi government is set to launch a programme designed to attract startups to the capital city, with a 150-arce hi-tech business park to be built.
By: | December 16, 2020
Topics: Compensation and Benefits | India | News | Restructuring

Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said his government is at an advanced stage of rolling out this programme with inputs from leading entrepreneurs. 

At a global summit of The IndUS Entrepreneurs (TiE), he also revealed his government’s plans to build both soft and hard infrastructure to facilitate the process of making the capital city a global startup destination. 

Under this programme, startups can access collateral-free loans. In addition, a dedicated hotline – 1076 – will be set up so that startups can incorporate their companies with help from chartered accountants and lawyers. 

Startups can also look forward to a one-stop window for all their interactions with different government departments.  

Kejriwal said. “We will enable easy access to experts in accounting, taxation, registration, legal help, digital marketing, etc. [The] Delhi government will align its public procurement in a manner that a fixed percentage of all goods and services are procured through recognised start-ups,”

Besides soft infrastructure, the Delhi government is also investing in hard infrastructure. “To help startups grow, we will form a range of networks with incubators, co-working spaces, and fabrication labs,” he added.  

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In addition, the Delhi government is setting up a 150-acre hi-tech business park at Rani Khera to be completed in seven phases. This park, located 15 minutes from IGI Airport, will house IT and service industries, among others. In the first phase, a 1.5 million-square-feet multi-storeyed building has been planned and targeted to be completed by August 31, 2022, said Times of India.  

There were 7,000 startups in Delhi-NCR (national capital region) in September 2019 – the highest number in the country, according to a TiE report. The valuation of these startups is about US$50 billion. The region has produced 13 unicorns like PayTM, Oyo and Zomato. At least one new unicorn has emerged every year since 2013. “Between January and June this year, 109 startups were founded in Delhi-NCR, the highest number being in the first six months,” said the chief minister.