Govt reduces allocation for Startup India in FY'20 Budget

New Delhi, Feb. 3 (PTI): The government has reduced the allocation for Startup India programme in the Budget 2019-20 but added more monies to the Make in India kitty. According to the budget documents, the allocation for Startup India programme has been slashed to INR 25 crore for 2019-20 from the revised estimate of INR 28 crore in 2018-19. Startup India initiative aims at fostering entrepreneurship and promoting innovation by creating an ecosystem that is conducive to growth of budding entrepreneurs. There are 19 components under the Startup India action plan spanning across areas such as simplification and hand holding, funding support and incentives, and industry-academia partnership and incubation, according to the documents. On the other hand, Make in India programme that received increased budgetary allocation include scheme for investment promotion (INR 232.02 crore), scheme for implementation of national manufacturing policy (INR 8.47 crore), and fund of funds (INR 100 crore). Overall, the total allocation for Make in India initiative was increased to INR 473.3 crore for 2019-20 as against the revised estimate of INR 149 crore in 2018-19. Make in India campaign, which aims to transform the country into a global manufacturing hub, was launched on September 25, 2014. However, the cumulative allocation for the department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP) has been reduced to INR 5,674.51 crore for 2019-20 as against the revised estimate of INR 6,140.23 crore in 2018-19. The department, which was recently renamed as Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), is under the commerce and industry ministry and deals with foreign investment related issues.