BJP promises ₹200 billion for startups now even as an existing fund remains mostly unused

• The BJP’s manifesto promises a seed startup fund of ₹200 billion.
• However, as of December 2018, the government’s ₹100 billion startup fund-of-funds had disbursed only 19% of the amount.
• Currently, only 182 startups have been funded by the government.

India’s ruling party Bharatiya Janata Party released its election manifesto which promises to build a ‘New India of 130 crore dreams” also made way for a new Seed Startup Fund of ₹200 billion.

However, its startup fund of funds of ₹100 billion is grossly underutilized. According to a report in TOI, as of December 2018, VCs had allocated only 19% of the ₹10,000 crore funds. The report had further quoted Mohammad Mustafa, chairman and managing director of SIDBI had said that the fund-of-funds would close the financial year at ₹3,300 crores.

The current number of funded startups today stands at 182, according to the official Startup India website. The government had said that the ₹10,000 crore fund would be released in two tranches until 2025.

According to the new election Manifesto, the BJP has also promised a new scheme to provide collateral-free credit up to ₹50 lakh for entrepreneurs. The manifesto also says that 50% of the loan amount will be reserved for women entrepreneurs.

The party wants to establish 50,000 new startups by 2024 along with 500 new incubators and accelerators.

See Also:
Narendra Modi's election manifesto packs larger doles and a rosy narrative
Narendra Modi’s manifesto keeps the fear over data privacy and protection alive