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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY
DEPARTMENT FOR PROMOTION OF INDUSTRY AND INTERNAL TRADE
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3746.
TO BE ANSWERED ON TUESDAY, THE 11TH AUGUST, 2026.
STARTUP INDIA INITIATIVE IN KARNATAKA
3746. DR. K SUDHAKAR:
Will the Minister of COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY be pleased to state:
वाणिज्य एवं उद्योग मंत्री
(a) whether the Government has assessed the implementation of the Startup India
Initiative in Karnataka, if so, the details thereof;
(b) the details of number of startups recognised, incubators supported and
beneficiaries under Startup India programme;
(c) the details of funds disbursed, mentorship provided and market access
provided to startups into the State of Karnataka during the last five years;
(d) whether there is any provision for reimbursing women-led startups for domestic
patents and foreign patents, if so, the details thereof; and
(e) the details of number of women startups benefited by patent reimbursement
during the last five years, State-wise including Karnataka?
ANSWER
वाणिज्य एवं उद्योग मंत्रालय में राज्य मंत्री (श्री णिणिन प्रसाद)
THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY
(SHRI JITIN PRASADA)
(a) to (c): Startup India initiative was launched on 16th January 2016, with an intent to
build a strong ecosystem for nurturing innovation, startups and encouraging
investments in the startup ecosystem of the country.
As on 30th June 2026, 2,40,092 entities have been recognised as startups by
the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).
Specifically in the State of Karnataka, a total of 24,026 entities have been
recognised as startups by DPIIT. Such startups from the State of Karnataka
have generated over 2.58 lakh direct jobs as on 30th June 2026. Moreover,
more than 11,400 of the recognized startups in the State of Karnataka have at
least one woman director/partner.
Under the Startup India initiative, the Government is implementing three
flagship Schemes, Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS), Startup India Seed Fund
Scheme (SISFS), and Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups (CGSS) toprovide funding opportunities and support startups across sectors at various
stages of their business cycle.
FFS has been established to catalyze venture capital investments and
is operationalized by Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI),
which provides capital to Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)-
registered Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) which in turn invest in startups.
As on 30th June 2026, AIFs supported under the Scheme have invested Rs.
27,902.7 crore in 1,460 startups.
Specifically in the State of Karnataka, AIFs supported under the Scheme have
invested Rs. 6,218.65 crore in 295 startups in the last five years viz., 2021,
2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025.
SISFS provides financial assistance to seed stage startups through incubators.
SISFS is implemented from 1st April 2021. As on 30th June 2026, 219
incubators have been selected under the Scheme with a total approved funding
of Rs. 945 crore. Further, incubators supported under the Scheme have
selected 4,245 startups with an approved funding of Rs. 706.33 crore. As on
30th June 2026, 22 incubators from Karnataka have been approved funding of
Rs. 104.48 crore.
Further, incubators under the Scheme have selected 404 startups with an
approved funding of Rs. 89.37 crore from the State of Karnataka in the last five
years viz., 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025.
CGSS is implemented for enabling credit access through debt funding to
startups through eligible financial institutions. CGSS is operationalized by the
National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company (NCGTC) Limited and has been
operationalized from 1st April 2023. As on 30th June 2026, 478 loans amounting
to Rs. 1,469.92 crore have been guaranteed for startup borrowers under
the Scheme. Specifically in the State of Karnataka, 44 loans amounting to Rs.
96.52 crore have been guaranteed for startup borrowers under the Scheme in
the last three years viz., 2023, 2024 and 2025.
Further, the Government is undertaking several measures to enable access to
finance, mentorship, infrastructure and market across the country including in
the State of Karnataka. Details of such measures are placed as Annexure-I.
(d) & (e): The Government has undertaken several measures to provide support to
startups, including women-led startups, for enabling filing of patents and
reimbursement for patent costs. Details of support provided are as follows:
i. Startups including women-led startups are eligible for an 80% concession
on the statutory fees for patent filing, processing, and maintenance. This
concession is provided as an upfront reduction in the statutory fees at the
time of filing and is not disbursed through a reimbursement mechanism.
During the last five years, viz., 2021-2022, 2022-2023, 2023-2024, 2024-
2025, and 2025-2026, a total of 4,110 startups have been beneficiaries of
the 80% fees concessions for patent application. Many startups have filed
more than one application. Of this, ~1,590 startups have at least onewoman director/partner. The State/UT-wise number of such startups with
at least one woman director/partner that received the 80% patent
application fee concession during the last five years is placed as
Annexure-II.
ii. Startups are also eligible for pro bono facilitation of patent filing and
prosecution under the Scheme for Facilitating Startups Intellectual
Property Protection (SIPP). Under this scheme, the facilitation fee is not
paid directly to the startups; instead, it is reimbursed to the eligible
facilitator selected by the startup from the panel of empanelled facilitators.
The reimbursement is made in two stages, at the time of filing the patent
application and upon its disposal.
Further, as a result of various initiatives undertaken by the Government, as on
30th June 2026, 2,40,092 entities have been recognised as startups by DPIIT.
Of these, more than 1.15 lakh recognized startups have at least one woman
director / partner.
*********ANNEXURE-I
ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) to (c) OF THE LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3746 FOR ANSWER ON 11.08.2026.
Measures undertaken by the Government to enable access to finance, mentorship,
infrastructure and market across the country including in the State of Karnataka:
1. The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) through its
autonomous organizations, namely National Institute for Entrepreneurship and Small
Business Development (NIESBUD) and Indian Institute of Entrepreneurship (IIE) has
taken various initiatives to promote entrepreneurship development amongst all sections
of the society. These initiatives include, Swavalambini programme, Entrepreneurship
Awareness Programmes (EAP), Entrepreneurship Development Programmes (EDP),
Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyaan (PMJANMAN), Entrepreneurship
Development Centres (EDC) in North East Region’s Educational Institutions, Dharti
Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarshh Abhiyan (DAJGUA), Pradhan Mantri Surya Ghar Muft
Bijli Yojana Scheme (PM SGMBY Scheme), and Capacity Building Programme for Fair
Price Shop Owners.
2. Ministry of Micro Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) is implementing the
Entrepreneurship and Skill Development Programme (ESDP) which aims to motivate
the youth/aspiring entrepreneurs to consider self-employment or entrepreneurship as
one of the career options.
3. The Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) of NITI Aayog fosters innovation and
entrepreneurship among India’s youth through flagship programs like Atal Tinkering
Labs (ATLs) and the Community Innovator Fellowship (CIF). Atal Incubation Centres
(AICs) incubation facilities and Atal Community Innovation Centres (ACIC) are
established under AIM to nurture innovative startup businesses and serve the
unserved/underserved areas of the country with respect to the startup and innovation
ecosystem. Further, programmes such as Mentor India under Atal Innovation Mission
(AIM) and Women Entrepreneurship Platform, are connecting startups and aspiring
entrepreneurs with mentors.
4. The Ministry of Education’s Innovation Cell (MIC) and All India Council for Technical
Education (AICTE) promotes innovation and entrepreneurship across educational
institutions.
5. Youth-centric initiatives have been introduced by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports
such as setting up of the autonomous body called Mera Yuva Bharat (MY Bharat), the
purpose of it, is to provide an over-arching institutional mechanism powered by
technology for youth development and youth-led development through Experiential
Learning Programs (ELPs), volunteering opportunities, mentorship programme, etc.
6. Under the Ministry of Defence the Scheme for Innovations for Defence Excellence
(iDEX) and Acing Development of Innovative Technologies with iDEX (ADITI) are
fostering innovation and technology development in defence and aerospace by
engaging startups.
7. Under the Department of Science & Technology, the Research, Development, and
Innovation (RDI) Scheme has been approved to incentivize private sector participation
in research and development (R&D). Further, DST is implementing the National Initiative
for Developing and Harnessing Innovations (NIDHI) to promote innovation and
entrepreneurship among the youth. The initiative comprises NIDHI-PRAYAS (prototype
grant support), NIDHI-EIR (Entrepreneur-in-Residence fellowships), NIDHI-iTBI
(Inclusive TBIs in Tier-II and Tier-III regions). The DST is also implementing the National
Quantum Mission (NQM), under which four thematic hubs (T-Hubs) have been
established.
8. The Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) has initiated the program,
Mission for Advancement in Highimpact Areas (MAHA) to address priority-driven,
solution-focused research in mission-mode.9. The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) has established biotechnology incubation and
pre-incubation centres across States & Union Territories (UTs) under the BioNEST
(Bioincubators Nurturing Entrepreneurship for Scaling Technologies) and EYUVA
(Encouraging Youth for Undertaking Innovative Research Activities) schemes.
10. Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) is undertaking initiatives such
as GENESIS (Gen-Next Support for Innovative Startups) Scheme, TIDE 2.0
(Technology Incubation and Development of Entrepreneurs) Scheme, and IndiaAI
Mission to promote the startup ecosystem.
11. Under the Ministry of Rural Development, the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National
Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) through Start-up Village Entrepreneurship
Programme (SVEP) supports Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and their family members to
set-up small enterprises in the nonfarm livelihoods sector.
12. The Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare (DA&FW), Government of India is
implementing “Innovation and Agri-Entrepreneurship Development” programme under
Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) from 2018-19 onwards with an objective to
promote innovation and agri-entrepreneurship by providing financial support and
nurturing an incubation ecosystem in the country.
13. The Government is undertaking taking various measures under the Startup India
initiative. The flagship Schemes namely, Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS), Startup India
Fund of Funds 2.0, Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) and Credit Guarantee
Scheme for Startups (CGSS) support startups across sectors at various stages of their
business cycle. The Government also implements periodic exercises and programs
including States’ Startup Ranking, National Startup Awards, Innovation Week, and
TEJAS (Transforming Entrepreneurial Journeys Across States & Districts) which play an
important role in the holistic development of the startup ecosystem including non-metro
and rural startup ecosystems. The Government also encourages and supports
ecosystem led initiatives such as Startup Mahakumbh which serve as a vibrant
platform for stakeholders to network and collaborate. Initiatives to improve market
access and enable public procurement also support startups in growing and scaling up
their businesses. The Government has also taken various measures to enhance ease
of doing business including starting up of business, raising capital, and reducing
compliance burden to simplify the regulatory environment and create a conducive
business environment. Activities to encourage corporates to support startups by way of
mentorship, access to infrastructure, sharing resources and knowledge, assistance in
market linkages, and investor connect are also undertaken.
14. To strengthen international linkages and enable global market access for Indian
startups, the Government facilitated participation of startups in major international
innovation platforms such as Bharat Innovates 2026 and VivaTech 2026. Bharat
Innovates 2026, organised in Nice, France as part of the India–France Year of
Innovation, enabled Indian startups to showcase innovations, participate in over 1,350
B2B meetings, and forge more than 50 collaborations with global partners, creating
opportunities for startup acceleration, research partnerships, technology
commercialisation and market access. Similarly, at VivaTech 2026, where India
participated as the AI Country Partner with its largest-ever delegation of over 80 deep-
tech startups, Indian startups showcased innovations across emerging technology
sectors and engaged with global investors, technology leaders and businesses,
strengthening cross-border collaborations and expanding international market
opportunities.
*********ANNEXURE-II
ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (d) & (e) OF THE LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3746 FOR ANSWER ON 11.08.2026.
The State/UT-wise number of startups with at least one woman director/partner that received
the 80% patent application fee concession during the last five years is as follows:
S. State/UT Number of beneficiary startups with at
No. least one woman director/partner
1. Andaman and Nicobar Islands ~1
2. Andhra Pradesh ~34
3. Assam ~13
4. Bihar ~19
5. Chandigarh ~12
6. Chhattisgarh ~9
7. Dadra and Nagar Haveli ~1
and Daman and Diu
8. Delhi ~118
9. Goa ~6
10. Gujarat ~68
11. Haryana ~70
12. Himachal Pradesh ~6
13. Jammu & Kashmir ~3
14. Jharkhand ~12
15. Karnataka ~274
16. Kerala ~51
17. Madhya Pradesh ~36
18. Maharashtra ~316
19. Manipur ~2
20. Nagaland ~1
21. Odisha ~40
22. Puducherry ~3
23. Punjab ~16
24. Rajasthan ~25
25. Tamil Nadu ~160
26. Telangana ~121
27. Uttar Pradesh ~129
28. Uttarakhand ~15
29. West Bengal ~35
********