Jaipur, June 2024.
In a meeting organised by Rajasthan Chief Minister, Shri Bhajanlal Sharma ahead of the presentation of the State Budget, startup and Fintech founders provided their suggestions and feedback to realise the Government’s vision of a ‘Developed Rajasthan-2047’.
India has emerged as the world’s third largest startup ecosystem, with the country comprising over 1.25 lakh startups and 110 unicorns. Startups are playing a crucial role in India’s journey towards becoming a developed nation and there is a significant need to foster the growth of the startup ecosystem for the overall economic growth.
Startup founders suggested in the pre-budget meeting with State government officials that there should be revenue support from the Government, skill development should be in focus and steps should be taken to stop the migration of startups from the State.
Vishal Sharma, Cofounder and CEO of AdvaRisk, a Fintech startup enabling financial institutions with end-to-end collateral management using its AI-powered data intelligence platform, highlighted the need to introduce training incentives for employees hired by startups. He stated, “Provisioning of training incentives will not only help startups to scale up faster but also help to upskill the youth of Rajasthan who are the backbone of our State economy. There should be training incentive for technical employee’s hired by start-ups in Rajasthan. This incentive will promote skilled workforce development in the startup sector.”
During the meeting, there was also emphasis on creating a more conducive environment for startups in the state. Entrepreneurs suggested several steps including establishing a technology park and providing credit at low rates. These steps, they believe, can also help in stopping migration of startups to other states.
“The Rajasthan ecosystem is witnessing an evolution in the startup ecosystem, and it is important to retain the startups in our state by entering into long term partnerships,” said Suyog Bora, Founder & CEO, Brenin Technologies Pvt Ltd.
In the past, many startups have chosen to migrate to other states even though they started their journey in Rajasthan. “We recommend allotting land to growth stage tech startups at a subsidised rate to promote employment and capex investment in our state which will help establish long term partnership and commitment of growth stage tech startups,” said Shubham Bajaj, Co-Founder of Balwaan Krishi.
In terms of revenue support, startups expect that there should be increase in contract value for startups. Currently, the limit of work order value to startups without tendering is limited to only Rs 25 lakhs per work order, which the industry expects to be increased to Rs 3 crore per work order. Similarly, they expect to be allowed to bid as a contractor/vendor for contracts up to Rs 25 crore and as a sub-contractor for more than Rs 25 crore contracts. Besides, founders highlighted the need for lower interest rates on loans to growth stage startups, which will promote easier access to capital for growth and expansion.
The budget session of Rajasthan Legislative Assembly is likely to begin on July 3. During the session the government will table the state Budget for discussion.
