The Delhi government is hoping to make the national capital a global startup hub. For this, it has planned policies designed to get 15,000 startups in the Delhi-NCR by 2030.
The “Delhi Startup Policy” — approved by the state cabinet on Thursday — will aim to enable entrepreneurs in the region and improve ease of business for founders.
Under this policy, startups will get various incentives, including up to 50 percent rent of office lease, partial reimbursement of employee salaries initially, reimbursement for patents and copyright applications, collateral and interest-free loans, facilitation of easy access to funding, free consultations from a panel of lawyers and other experts, and promises to procure products and services from local startups.
In addition, the Delhi government is also aiming to make it easier for students to enter the startup ecosystem. It wants to introduce entrepreneurship classes and “business blasters” programmes to educate potential new founders.
Additionally, the Arwind Kejriwal-led government will also grant leaves to students at public universities if they want to focus on building startups.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal hopes these fiscal and non-fiscal incentives will return exponential gains for the Delhi and National Capital Region (NCR). “This policy will lead to a wave of startups in Delhi, and it will become the home of behemoth businesses and unicorns,” he said.
