In the last decade, ‘Startup India’ has changed the face of the country.
There was a time when starting your own business in India or coming up with a new idea was considered like a tough task. Lack of capital, hassles in government offices and abundance of rules were the reasons due to which even good ideas died. But this picture has completely changed in the last 10 years. The data released by the government on the completion of a decade of the ‘Startup India’ initiative shows how India has become the third largest startup ecosystem in the world. When this mission was started in 2016, there were hardly 500 recognized startups in the country. Today in 2025 this number has increased to beyond 2 lakhs.
Revolution spread from big cities to small towns
It was generally believed that businesses and startups were limited only to big metros like Bengaluru, Mumbai or Delhi. But in the last decade, Startup India has broken this illusion. According to the latest data, more than 50 percent of the country’s startups are now coming from tier-2 and tier-3 cities. This simply means that entrepreneurship is no longer the domain of big cities only, but the youth of small towns are also working on their ideas. The participation of women in this has also been excellent. The report shows that more than 45 percent of recognized startups have at least one woman director.
Government becomes the biggest ‘angel investor’
Before 2016, the biggest challenge for any new business was funding. It was difficult to get loans from banks and private investors were afraid to take risks. To fill this gap, the government itself came forward and extended a helping hand. A corpus of Rs 945 crore was created under the ‘Startup India Seed Fund Scheme’ launched in 2021. Today, through 219 incubators across the country, this money is helping in taking new ideas to prototype and market.
Additionally, the Rs 10,000 crore ‘Fund of Funds’ managed by SIDBI facilitated private investment. The result was that Indian startups have received private investment of more than $150 billion in the last 10 years. Now if the youth have a strong idea, then lack of money does not become a hindrance in their path.
Freedom from the clutches of rules
The biggest relief for startups has come from relaxation in rules. Over the last few years, more than 47,000 compliances have been reduced and 4,458 legal provisions have been decriminalized. Startups now have the freedom to get themselves certified under 9 labor laws and 3 environmental laws, so they do not have to face frequent government inspections. Also, if a business is not able to run, the process of closing it (exit mechanism) has also been made easier, which earlier used to be stuck for years, can now be completed in 90 days.
The government not only eased the rules, but has also emerged as a big customer. Startups have done business worth more than Rs 38,500 crore through Government e-Marketplace (GeM). This has given opportunities to new players even in difficult sectors like defence, space and agri-tech.
More than 120 unicorns in India
Today, there are more than 120 unicorns (companies valued at more than one billion dollars) in India, whose total valuation is more than $350 billion. Startups have created more than 21 lakh jobs so far. The rate of closure of startups in 2025 was the lowest in the last five years, which shows that now Indian companies are not just experimenting, but are building businesses to survive and last long. These startups are going to play the most important role in making India a 7.3 trillion dollar economy by 2030.