Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal recently held a meeting with the founders of 54 Indian unicorns, including prominent names like Zomato and Paytm, to deliberate on the trajectory of growth for the country’s burgeoning startup ecosystem. The meeting, which took place on January 17, focused on the pivotal role of domestic capital in augmenting the startup landscape in India and its position on the global stage.
Founders in attendance included Vijay Shekhar Sharma of Paytm, Rikant Pitti of EaseMyTrip, Sandeep Aggarwal of Droom, Deepinder Goyal of Zomato, Aman Gupta of boAt, and representatives from Flipkart, Phonepe, Swiggy, OYO, and Zerodha.
According to reports from the meeting, Minister Goyal suggested the formation of a startup association or a club of unicorns to address the challenges faced by startups collectively. Vijay Shekhar Sharma mentioned that such an association could play a crucial role in finding solutions, including facilitating connections with bankers and investors to ensure access to capital.
Sandeep Aggarwal, founder of Droom, shared on social media that the meeting covered various suggestions to enhance the ease of doing business, access to capital, and resolution of tax-related issues, among other topics.
Sanjiv Singh, Joint Secretary in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), mentioned that the government received valuable suggestions from the founders. Discussions included the mentoring roles that unicorn startups could play for emerging startups and addressing pain points that require government intervention.
The meeting coincided with the National Startup Day celebration, during which the DPIIT released the state-wise startup rankings for 2022. Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Himachal Pradesh emerged as the top performers in the rankings. Additionally, the government announced the winners of the National Startup Awards 2023, recognizing 20 startups across different categories.
As of October 2023, the DPIIT reported that India was home to over 1.14 lakh startups, showcasing the significant growth of the startup ecosystem in recent years.
