Almost 2 lakh jobs generated by Indian start-ups in 2021, a four-year high: Govt

Indian start-ups recognised by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) have created 1,92,427 jobs in 2021 so far, the highest in four years, the Union government informed the parliament on December 15.

Cumulatively, almost six lakh jobs were generated in the past four years, it added.

The number of jobs generated in 2018 was 93,527 “by startups recognized by DPIIT”, and there was a growth of this year on year. While 2019 saw creation of 1,42,646 jobs, the number went up to 1,69,724 in 2020 despite the pandemic outbreak, according to official data.

As of December 8, the 1,92,427 jobs were generated by DPIIT-recognised startups, an indication of the growing entrepreneurial culture and growth of start-ups in India. Since 2018, cumulatively 5,98,324 jobs were generated by start-ups, the Union government said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.

Responding to a specific query on jobs created by start-ups in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, the government said since 2018, start-ups in Maharashtra have created 1,14,533 jobs as against 17,019 by start-ups in Madhya Pradesh.

The union government, however, said that there is no centralized compilation of information on year-wise contribution made by start-ups in the Gross Domestic Production (GDP) of the country. But it underlined some of the efforts the union government has taken to promote the start-up culture in the country.

Government of India as part of Startup India initiative has implemented Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS) Scheme and Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) across all States/UTs to promote private investment in the Startups through Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) and incubators.

“Under FFS, a corpus of Rs. 10,000 crore has been sanctioned, spread over 14th and 15th Finance Commission cycles. Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) is the nodal bank under this Scheme. The FFS Scheme does not directly provide financial assistance to startups, instead supports SEBI- registered Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs), who in turn invest money in growing Indian start-ups through equity and equity-linked instruments.

“Under the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS), Rs 945 crore has been sanctioned for a period of 4 years starting from 2021-22. The funds are released to start-ups through approved Incubators,” the commerce ministry informed.