New Delhi, April 30: The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Chamber India to strengthen India’s startup ecosystem and promote innovation-led growth.
The Ministry of Commerce & Industry in a release said that the partnership aims to enhance engagement between startups, corporates, investors, and global stakeholders, while facilitating international linkages and cross-border collaboration.
It will also support startups through initiatives aligned with national programmes and promote entrepreneurship across key sectors such as skilling, health, agriculture, and emerging technologies.
Under the collaboration, DPIIT-recognised startups will benefit from concessional membership of the Chamber with a 50 per cent rebate, enabling access to services such as export facilitation, IPR advisory, business matchmaking, and participation in global delegations.
The Chamber will also work towards establishing five incubation and startup support centres across India, with a focus on Aspirational Districts, Northeastern states, and other emerging regions to promote inclusive and balanced growth.
Startups have emerged as a vital pillar of India’s economic transformation, driving innovation, job creation, and inclusive development. Over the past decade, India has rapidly evolved into one of the world’s largest startup ecosystems, with more than 2 lakh startups as of December 2025 .
Major hubs like Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Delhi-NCR have been at the forefront of this transformation.
At the same time, smaller cities are also steadily contributing to the momentum with around 50% of the startups emerging from Tier II/ III cities. , reflecting the democratisation of entrepreneurship.
Startups are increasingly bridging India’s rural- urban divide by deploying solutions across agri-tech, telemedicine, microfinance, tourism, and ed-tech, directly addressing developmental gaps and supporting rural livelihoods.
Within this landscape, women-led startups are emerging as a key driver of inclusive and regionally balanced growth, with more than 45% of recognised startups having at least one-woman Director/Partner as of December 2025.
This reflects the emergence of innovation not only as an economic engine but also as a driver of social equity and balanced regional development.
The Startup India Initiative, led by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, has emerged as the cornerstone of India’s innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystem. Over the past decade, the initiative has evolved from a policy-focused framework into a comprehensive, multi-dimensional platform supporting startups at every stage from ideation to scaling operations. This progress is reflected in India’s high-value startup ecosystem, which has expanded from just four privately held companies valued above $1 billion in 2014 to over 120 such firms today, with a combined valuation exceeding $350 billion underscoring both the scale and growing global relevance of India’s startup landscape.
Startups are leveraging India’s young demographic dividend, generating employment across technology, services, and manufacturing sectors, while also creating indirect job opportunities through gig work and supply chains. Beyond employment, startups are increasingly collaborating with large corporates and multinational companies, facilitating technology transfer, scalability, and global market integration.
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