PM Narendra Modi declares January 16 as 'National Start-Up Day'; Calls it 'hallmark of India'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared January 16 as 'National Start-up Day'. During the virtual gathering, he called startups the 'hallmark' of new India that will power the nation's economic growth in the run-up to the 100th year of Independence. PM further said that 2022 has brought more new opportunities for the start-up sector and organizing of Start-Up India Innovation Week is also important in India's independence. Startups from various sectors including Agriculture, Health, Enterprise Systems, Space, Industry 4.0, Security, Fintech, Environment etc were part of this interaction.

January 16 as 'National Start-Up Day'

PM Modi said, "Start-ups are the "hallmark of self-reliant, self-confident India". The PMO also released a statement in this regard that reads, "More than 150 startups have been divided into six working groups based on themes including Growing from Roots; Nudging the DNA; From Local to Global; Technology of Future; Building Champions in Manufacturing and Sustainable Development." As a part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, a week-long event, "Celebrating Innovation Ecosystem", is being hosted by DPIIT, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, from 10 to 16 January 2022. The event marks the 6th anniversary of the launch of the Startup India initiative.

The interaction aims to understand how startups can contribute to national needs by driving innovation in the country. It further said that the Prime Minister has been a firm believer in the potential of Startups to contribute significantly to the growth of the nation. Even in 2020, the central government had talked about 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat'. The phrase was popularly used concerning the economic vision and economic development in the country.