Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the next phase of India’s economic growth will be driven by entrepreneurs. He urged young entrepreneurs to take risks and contribute to the goal of making India a developed nation by 2047.
New Delhi [भारत]July 18 (ANI): Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that India’s next phase of economic growth will increasingly be driven by entrepreneurs who are willing to take greater risks, leverage technology and expand beyond traditional geographical boundaries. He urged young entrepreneurs to overcome hesitations and contribute to the ambition of making the country a developed nation by 2047.
Addressing a special plenary session of the YiFi Entrepreneurship Summit 2026 in Madurai, Sitharaman said India is projected to contribute one-sixth of global growth in the coming years, but its entrepreneurial ecosystem has the potential to further increase that contribution. “It doesn’t have to be just one-sixth. Why can’t it be one-fourth? That’s not a question. We can do it,” he said, adding that this opportunity will come from India’s entrepreneurs and its young workforce.
New opportunities opening up from startup ecosystem
Sitharaman highlighted India’s growing startup ecosystem and said that more than 2.4 lakh DPIIT-recognized startups have created over 23 lakh jobs. He also pointed to the country’s digital public infrastructure, with UPI processing more than 20 billion transactions every month, opening up new opportunities for businesses.
Urging entrepreneurs to use technology to access information, resources and markets, the Finance Minister said, “The barriers that once separated talent from opportunity are now steadily diminishing. Of course, geography still matters, but imagination matters much more.”
The role of government is no longer that of a controller, but that of a facilitator.
He said the role of the government has moved towards enabling enterprises rather than controlling them. Formalization, digitalization, regulatory reforms and investment in infrastructure are helping businesses start, operate and expand. “This is the right time to live and do business in India,” Sitharaman said, citing policy certainty, tax stability and an accessible government as key benefits.
Entrepreneurs focus on value creation and R&D
He called on entrepreneurs to expand into emerging sectors including Artificial Intelligence applications in agriculture, food processing and other sunrise industries. He also urged businesses to focus on value creation, research and development (R&D) and intellectual property rather than just valuation.
“India needs entrepreneurs who aspire, create value sustainably, build companies that invest in research and development, create intellectual property, mentor future entrepreneurs and earn trust over decades,” he said.
Sitharaman said entrepreneurship beyond boundaries ultimately means moving beyond self-imposed limits. “It is our own hesitations that are the limit,” he said, and urged young entrepreneurs to embrace risk, perseverance and innovation as India moves towards Developed India 2047. (ANI)
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