Indian Economy News

“Let us aim for atleast 75 unicorns in the 75 weeks to the 75th Anniversary of Independence”: Shri Piyush Goyal

Shri Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, today urged Indian industry to aim for 75 unicorns in the 75 weeks leading up to India's 75th anniversary of independence next year.

“We have added 43 unicorns added in 45 weeks, since the start of ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ on 12th March, 2021. Let us aim for at least 75 unicorns in this 75-week period to 75th Anniversary of Independence,” he remarked while unveiling the NASSCOM Tech Start-up Report 2022. “India has now become the hallmark of a trailblazer & is leaving its mark on global start up landscape. Investments received by Indian start-ups overshadowed pre-pandemic highs. 2021 will be remembered as the year Indian start-ups delivered on their promise, - fearlessly chasing opportunities across verticals - Edtech, HealthTech & AgriTech amongst others,” he said.

Shri Goyal praised the ITES (Information Technology Enabled Services) industry, notably the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sector, for setting a record for Services exports last year. He also added, "services Export for Apr-Dec 2021 reached more than US$ 178 billion despite the Covid19 pandemic when the Travel, Hospitality & Tourism sectors were significantly down." According to Shri Goyal, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has announced January 16th as National Start-up Day, demonstrating his commitment to spreading the innovation culture to every nook and cranny of the country.

Shri Goyal stated that the government has taken many efforts to strengthen the start-up ecosystem:

•  Resolving 'Angel tax' issues, simplifying tax procedures, and allowing self-certification and self-regulation are all steps in the right direction.
•  Over 26,500 compliances have been reduced in their burden.
• 770 violations have been decriminalised.

According to Shri Goyal, India's unique digital infrastructure - Aadhaar, Digilocker, Fastag, Cowin, UPI, and so on - has enabled Access and Affordability.

“The Cowin portal showed the world that Indian could run world’s largest vaccination programme efficiently & effectively, with complete mapping & monitoring done digitally. UPI has helped new age technologies in reaching the common man at affordable prices,” stated Shri Goyal. “The next “UPI moment” will be the ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce). The first-of-its-kind globally, ONDC to enable interoperability between eCommerce companies, providing equal opportunity to small & large players, will help control digital monopolies & make industry more inclusive for buyers & sellers alike, empowering MSMEs to unlock innovation & value,” he added.

Shri Goyal outlined a five-point roadmap for the NASSCOM's future:

•   Focus on people's basic and core needs, such as improving access to financial services, education, and healthcare, and finding answers to farmer difficulties, among other things.
• Concentrate on high-growth, job-creating industries such as advertising and marketing, professional services, fitness and wellness (yoga is growing increasingly popular around the world), gaming, sports, and audio-visual services.
• AI, IoT, Big Data, Data Analytics, Blockchain, Virtual Reality, 3D Printing, Drones, and other Deep Tech should be used by more businesses to produce solutions for local and worldwide markets.
•  Startups from Tier 2 and 3 cities have a lot of potential. If we provide them with more assistance and good coaching, they may be able to play a significantly larger role in the years to come.
•  India will take over the G20 leadership in 2023; please offer subjects that resonate with our vision for resolving global concerns.

“While 2021 was a year in which we defied all odds, 2022 will be the breakthrough year which will unlock country’s exponential value. ‘India at 100’ will be renowned as a Start-up nation. But as PM Modi said yesterday in his speech- the “Amrit Kaal,” the coming 25 years - are the period of utmost hard work, sacrifice and tapasya,” he said.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.