A visionary industrialist, philanthropist, and one of the most influential global business tycoons, Rata Tata once said these words and we can now see them turning into a reality.

Since the advent of the pandemic in the year 2020, the way users react to the products and services around them has undergone a tremendous change. People have understood the many advantages they can consume from the integration of automation and technology in every aspect of their day-to-day life. From ordering food online to receiving medical supplies, makeup products, and homeware at doorstep, these days everyone is engaging with online businesses more than ever. As a result, many startups that were struggling to survive before COVID, are today ready to win the markets and transition into the companies they aspired to be.

Over the years, India has successfully become one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. In fact, as per a recent research report released by State Bank of India, India is at present the fifth largest economy, overtaking the United Kingdom, and is on its way to achieving the title of ‘third-largest economy’ by 2029 considering the current growth rate.

Lately, global investors have been addressing India as a nation with exceptional potential. The untapped markets, advanced technologies, large population, low-cost labor, incredible minds, and a variety of government initiatives have made this country the best destination for startup investments. And clearly, our startup ecosystem has a crucial role to play in facilitating the rise of the Indian economy.

Meanwhile, the current rate of smartphone growth, digitization increase and the unique set of challenges to solve in our country are also driving innovation among many startups solving for

Bharat.

Since the inception of the ‘Make in India’ initiative in the year 2014, the central government has introduced several schemes and programs to offer necessary training, skill sets, technical and financial guidance, and subsidies in order to fuel the growth of small-scale entrepreneurs. With the massive support lent by the government, the individuals not only get to make a name for themselves in the local markets but also receive the accessibility to attract the attention of foreign investors.

On 15 January 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared 16 January as ‘National Startup Day’ to acknowledge as well as accelerate the growth of the Indian startup ecosystem. He told the young entrepreneurs of the country – “
Don’t just keep your dreams local, make them global”.

Here are some of the top government schemes every budding entrepreneur should know

1. SAMRIDH Scheme– Launched by the Ministry of Electronics and Information and Technology (MeitY) in the year 2021, the SAMRIDH scheme aims to provide a platform that can be instrumental to the growth of software product startups. Through this initiative, the government wants to offer financial support, mentorship, advanced skill sets, international expansion opportunities, and every other assistance to the startups that are ready for the acceleration stage.
   It is important to note that the MeitY Startup Hub will act as an implementing agency and will take equity in the startup for the government’s involvement through a promissory note, similar to any other accelerator.
2. PMMY (Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojna)– The government introduced this scheme in the year 2015 to bolster the growth of small businesses in rural areas. Under this scheme, many Micro Units Development Refinance Agency (MUDRA) Banks have been created to provide credit facilities to business owners situated in underdeveloped parts of the country. Through this scheme, all the small-scale enterprises that are non-corporate and non-farm can get a startup loan of up to INR 10 lakhs.
3. Multiplier Grants Scheme– With the Multiplier Grants Scheme launched by the Department of Electronics and Information Technology, the government wants to blur the gap between research and development and commercialization. MSG intends to encourage businesses to collaborate with accredited academic and government R&D organizations for the development of products and packages. Through the implementation of this scheme, the industry-academia gap can be reduced and the needs of the market can be addressed better.
   For an individual industry, the government grants would be limited to Rs. 2 crores per project, and the duration of each project should be less than 2 years. Whereas, for industry consortium, it is Rs. 4 crores and 3 years respectively.
4. Startup India Seed Fund Scheme– Designed to assist very early-stage startups, Startup India Seed Fund Scheme has been allocated a total budget of 945 crore rupees. Through this scheme, around 300 incubators and 3600 startups are expected to receive the funds. Grants of up to 20 lakhs will be offered to the startups for the development of trials and prototypes, and around 50 lakhs for scaling their products and services. Also, grants of up to 5 crores will be provided to selected incubators.
   A noteworthy advantage of this scheme is that it assures the reimbursement of all expenses. A startup can expect the total amount of reimbursement to be up to 15 lakhs or 50% of the total cost, whichever turns out to be less.
5. Single Point Registration Scheme – In the long list of initiatives started by the government, Single Point Registration Scheme or SPRS is another scheme you can benefit from. Launched by National Small Industries Corporation, the aim of this scheme is to assist the MSMEs as well as facilitate the procurement department in every way possible. By opting for this scheme, the MSMEs can get exempt from paying Earnest Money Deposit or EMD and easily participate in large government tenders.
   What makes this scheme highly beneficial is that the MSMEs get a third-party inspection certificate, which offers them an edge over others in terms of reliability. All the procurement agencies will mark the certified MSMEs as reliable, and this will eventually help in boosting their sales.

These are some of the schemes and programs introduced by the government over the last few years. You can easily enroll yourself in schemes that dovetail completely with the vision and requirements of your business and can help it reach greater heights.

India, as a nation is gradually paving its way to the golden era of entrepreneurship by consistently promoting the idea of Atmanirbhar Bharat. The objective of these schemes is not only to aid and nurture the existing small-scale businesses but also to provide a stepping-stone to all those who wish to enter the startup ecosystem and make a difference to it.

Start from SMALL, but think BIG!