India announced a new fund of $ 1.15 billion for startups on Saturday, while he unveiled radical reforms of the regulations and an ambitious nuclear energy program, because New Delhi wants to stimulate technical innovation and clean energy in the fifth largest economy in the world.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who presents the federal budget for 2025-26, said that the fund is breaking on earlier Startup financing programs that have already deployed more than $ 1 billion of alternative investment funds. The new fund will have an “extensive scope” compared to previous initiatives, although specific focus areas were not detailed in the budget.
She also outlined plans for a high-level committee for legal reforms that will revise all non-financial sector instructions, certifications, licenses and permissions within a year. The initiative is intended to strengthen “trust-based economic administration” and to facilitate compliance costs for startups and technology companies, she said.
New Delhi will investigate a separate Deep Tech Fund of Funds to catalyze startups of the next generation that work on advanced technologies, part of a broader push to strengthen India’s position in emerging technical sectors.
These measures are because the Startup Ecosystem of India emerges as a large job limiter and a source of pride for the country, the wider economy of which is expected to grow between 6.3% and 6.8% in the coming year. The government gambles on innovation and entrepreneurship to achieve its long -term objective of 8% growth needed to create adequate jobs for its young population.
In the past decade, startups in India have attracted more than $ 100 billion from investors, including Norges, Softbank, Sequoia, Accel, Tiger Global, General Catalyst and General Atlantic. The home base of more than 100 unicorn startups, India has also cemented its place as perhaps the last large growth market for Silicon Valley Giants.
“The first fund to be done a few years ago gave the Indian risk capital industry a huge interpretation,” said Sanjeev Bikhandani, a controversial investor who is one of the earliest donors of Zomato and Policybazaar. “Dozens of Indian VC funds have been set up to offer risk capital to hundreds of startups. India needs domestic risk capital. “
The government also announced a $ 2.3 billion nuclear energy mission aimed at developing at least five indigenous small modular reactors by 2033. The program is part of India’s goal to be 100 gigawatts of nuclear energy capacity by 2047 reach, with planned changes in the Atomic Energy Act to participation of the private sector.
“We are determined to ensure that our regulations keep track of technological innovations and global policy developments,” Sitharaman said in its budget state and announced plans to decriminalize more than 100 provisions in various laws via a new Jan Vishwas Bill 2.0.
The government also extended the tax benefits for startups for five years, so that companies were established before April 2030 to claim certain subtractions. For startups in 27 sectors that were crucial for the objectives for self -reliance of India, the government reduced the guarantee costs to 1% and doubled their credit guarantee limit to $ 230,000.
A new schedule aimed at 500,000 first entrepreneurs, in particular women and those of planned cupboards and tribes, will provide up to $ 24,000 in the coming five years. The program builds on lessons from the existing stand-up India scheme, the minister said, with the aim of broadening the reach of the startup ecosystem.
To stimulate the innovation in the production of electronics, an important focus area for technical startups, the government introduced a suspected tax scheme for non-residents involved in setting up production facilities. The budget also proposes ‘Bharattradenet’, a uniform platform for trade documentation and financing solutions that can benefit fintech startups.