Wednesday, 6 July 2016

Govt To Incentivize Software Startups In India

In a bid to encourage new startups in the country, the government has taken an initiative to offer fiscal incentives to software start-ups. The aim behind the move is to bring in and sustain 10,000 new start-ups, which are expected to create 3.5 million jobs, directly or indirectly. According to the report published in an online portal, nc42.com, the government has finalized a ‘National Policy on Software
Products-2016’ to promote talent in the international market. Besides, the government aims to contribute a bigger share of software products from India to the global market. The global software products industry is estimated to be around $411 Billion; expected to reach around $1 Tn by 2025. According to estimates, Indian software product industry index grew by 26.6 percent annually in 2015 and 80 percent of this growth came from companies focused on global markets. The software industry in the country is valued at $143 billion, and by 2025, it has the potential to reach $350 billion. India accounts for a little over a third of the global software products industry that is valued at $411 billion. The value is said to reach $1 trillion by 2025, the report quoted the draft policy prepared by the Ministry of Communications. In a meeting with senior Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY) officials in June, Communications and IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had said that the aim is to create a conducive environment for creation of 10,000 technology startups, to develop software products that are globally competitive, and thereby generating direct and indirect employment for 3.5 Mn (35 lakh) by 2025. The policy, which is to be announced shortly, plans to offer incentives to startups which create revenues of over INR 25 Cr and directly employ 25 people. The ministry also aimed at encouraging research and development (R&D), disruptive innovations and cutting edge technologies. The ministry also said that it plans to allocate a fixed portion of funds in electronic development fund, created by department of electronics and information technology, and innovation fund, created by the ministry of finance, exclusively for domestic software product industry promoted by resident Indian nationals. The policy will also focus on the availability of funds and investments in startups dealing with software products. Also, an inter-ministerial coordination group will be set up to leverage StartUp India initiative to ensure ease of business and to address concerns specific to software product industry.

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