The Rajasthan Chief Minister, Smt. Vasundhara Raje, unveiled the Rajasthan Startup Policy – 2015 while inaugurating the first edition of the Rajasthan Startup Fest, a national level startup event designed to boost entrepreneurship in the state. The ‘Rajasthan Startup Fest’ has been organised by the Rajasthan State Industrial Development & Investment Corporation [RIICO]; Startup Oasis, a Jaipur-based incubation centre set up by RIICO and CIIE and The Centre for Innovation, Incubation & Entrepreneurship [CIIE] of the Indian Institute of Management [IIM], Ahmedabad
Key Highlights of Rajasthan Startup Policy 2015
Key 5-Year Targets identified by the Rajasthan Startup Policy 2015
- 50 Incubators / Incubator-like Organizations to be established
- 500 innovative startups to be supported and incubated
- 100,000 sq ft of Incubation Space to be developed/facilitated
- Angel and Venture Capital of Rs 500 Cr to be mobilized for startups
- Development of an Innovation and Problem Solving Culture across the State
Key Focus Areas of the Rajasthan Startup Policy
- Social and Clean-tech – Rural Infrastructure & Services, Crafts, Water, Sanitation, Renewable Energy and Healthcare, including asset light models of healthcare delivery and medical devices
- Mobile and Information Technology, including but not limited to crowd sourcing, crowd funding, online financial services
- Internet of Things [IoT], Electronics and Hardware
- ‘IT for X’ in the areas of Garment and Crafts, Mining and SME Manufacturing and Services
- Disruptive ideas/Technologies in any sector
Pointers from the Policy
- The Science and Technology Department, GoR in association with RIICO and Start-up Oasis, is planning to create Rajasthan Start-up Village and e-Platform. In due course of time, it can also host a cloud server for start-ups, run MOOCs and co-ordinate with various related state and central govt. agencies to further strengthen start-up eco-system in the state of Rajasthan
- The Government of Rajasthan will provide Assistance for Startups at Idea/Prototype Stage, under which Rs. 10,000/- per month will be provided to the startup as sustenance allowance for one year, post approval by the Committee and Nodal Institution
- Incubator will provide support to the startups by providing mentoring services, access to their labs, facilities etc on a free-of-cost (FOC) basis
- The state government will allow selected startups to get free access to state infrastructure like University/Libraries/ Govt. Laboratories etc
- The Government of Rajasthan will provide Assistance for Startups at the Pilot Stage, under which marketing assistance of maximum Rs. 10 lacs will be provided to the startup to launch its product
- The policy also provides for scope for financial assistance wherein the startup can source Venture Capital from Angel Investors/Venture Capital Funds
- The policy provides for students/student teams who have been accepted to be given grace marks and attendance in educational institutions. Further, their project may also count towards their degree completion credits
- Special incentives have been listed for educational institutions that promote entrepreneurship. The Nodal institution will also organize a state-wide business plan competition to invite new innovative business idea from across the state
- Special incentives have also been listed for private players supporting the Incubation Centre. Incentives, including grants, have also been extended to angel investors
- The policy also provides for routine Startup Festivals to be held in the State
- The policy suggests the creation of a Startup Council to be setup with representatives from the industry to play an advisory role and act as a think-tank for strengthening the startup eco-system in the state.
Speaking at the inauguration of the Startup Fest, Smt. Raje said
If Bangalore is where it all began in startups, I can assure you Rajasthan is where it will be. Rajasthan is a world-beater and will remain so in the times to come.
The Rajasthan Startup Policy is designed to galvanize the start-up ecosystem and give the required sustenance to the entrepreneurial talent native to the people of the state.
Chief Minister Raje added
I am sure that the young and budding entrepreneurs and startups that are on the threshold of taking off shall take advantage of the Rajasthan Start-up Policy-2015 and the dynamic environment being provided by the start-up fest to take their careers, companies and the country to greater heights.
Jaipur is fast becoming the next startup hub of India with excellent social and physical infrastructure, low cost of living, large number of technical and professional colleges and proximity to NCR
Speaking at the inauguration, Shri CS Rajan, Chief Secretary, Government of Rajasthan, said that Jaipur has now overtaken Bangalore in terms of the number of deals that have happened in the last 6 months in angel funding and venture capital funding.
Gajendra Singh, Khimsar, Industries Minister, Rajasthan; Arun Nanda, Chairman, Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Limited; Kunal Upadhyay, CEO, CIIE, IIM Ahmedabad; Rajesh Agarwal, Co-founder & Managing Director, Micromax and Nagaraj Prakasam, Partner, Acumen Fund also spoke on the occasion.
The Rajasthan Startup Fest brings together on one platform more than 500 individuals associated with the startup industry, including the promoters of 100 startups, 20 angel and venture capital investors, 30 mentors and startup coaches and 50 speakers.
The Fest comprises multiple tracks of scouting, incubation and acceleration of startup, covering sectors like the Internet, hardware, mobile, social, and disruptive ideas & technologies. Multiple demonstrations, pitches and product launches will be held on both the days of the event interspersed with high energy interactions, talks, panel discussions and mentoring sessions.
The topics of panel discussions include Startup Funding, Fostering a Startup & Innovation Ecosystem, and Hustling & Growth Hacking, among others. A special business plan competition has also been organised for students with prize money of up to Rs. 1 lakh.
Around 50 high potential product startups are showcasing their products and business models in the Startup Showcase at the event.
[Image Credit* – Rajasthan Tourism]