The Central government is going to scale up the network of incubators and accelerators to phenomenally multiple levels in the next 3 years, said Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Minister of Electronics and Information Technology, on Tuesday. Speaking about the entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem in the country, he said the number of incubators and accelerators which is around 100 at present, is not sufficient for a country of over 130 crore population, and hence the government will be scaling up the network of incubators and accelerators to phenomenally multiple levels in the next 3 years. He added that all of these will be professionally managed and housed in institutions, industries and places where they will add real value.
Vaishnav launched the ‘Amrit Mahotsav Shri Shakti Challenge 2021’ to mark the occasion of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav. He said, “I hope we will see many participants who will convert their concepts into products and take them to the pitching stage.” The aim of the Mahotsav is Nari Sashaktikaran, which means to empower women that will help them achieve their full potential. According to the release by the Ministry of Electronics & IT, the winners of ‘MeitY-NASSCOM Startup Women Entrepreneurs’ Awards were announced during the event.
How will the government help start-ups and women entrepreneurs?
Union Minister Vaishnaw said, “We would all be partners in this journey, and the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY) will always be your journey towards becoming successful entrepreneurs.” He further claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has been setting a new benchmark for the development of all since they came into power seven years ago. He said that it was PM Modi’s philosophy of ‘Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas Sabka Vishwas’ that inspired his department to introduce a flagship scheme towards women empowerment. He assured the entrepreneurs that the government will support the start-ups during the initial risk phase. “We are looking for a million entrepreneurs to make their mark and create new jobs,” he concluded.