Govt nod to more start-up incubators at colleges
HRD HAS APPROVED PLANS FOR FOUR RESEARCH PARKS THAT WOULD PROMOTE TECHNOLOGY, START-UPS AND FUNDING IN
NEW VENTURES
NEW DELHI: The Human Resources Development (HRD) Ministry is giving a major legup to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Start-up India scheme that is aimed at promoting entrepreneurship in the country.
The ministry has approved plans for four research parks to house incubation centres at three Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) -- Delhi, Kanpur, and Guwahati —and Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore to incubate about 400 start-ups in a three year cycle.
The approvals to the new projects, totalling `300 crore, are in addition to similar research parks at IIT Madras, Kharagpur and Bombay.
According to a senior HRD official, a number of proposals were received but a nod has been given to four so far in a meeting held recently.
“The research park would become an anchor for innovative enterprises by promoting technology, incubation, start-ups and funding these new ventures on soft terms. The move will also benefit the industry in enhancing the competitive advantage of the individual companies by making use of these centres to hone their innovation plans and research,” said a senior HRD official. It is expected that the start-up enterprises will redefine existing business or production process by bringing in innovations that would serve the people better.
The HRD plans to expand the concept to all IITs, National Institutes of Technology (NITs) and Indian Institutes of Management that are receiving interest from students and faculty for start-up ventures.
“The industry will benefit through an increased thrust on innovation and research, which will enhance the competitive advantage of individual companies,” said a senior HRD official.
Research Parks all over the world are supported by governments, especially for creation of initial infrastructure.
On January 16, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had unveiled the Start-up Action plan for the country and had said that seven new research parks would be set up modelled on the research park at IIT Madras.
The Start Up India scheme to encourage entrepreneurship includes three years of tax and compliance breaks aimed at cutting onerous government regulations and red tape for budding businesses. The Centre also plans to set up a `10,000 crore start-up fund, first announced by finance minister Arun Jaitley in the interim budget of 2014-15.