Best Government Entities/Schemes that are beneficial for the startups in India

1. NewGen IEDC – Introduced last year, the NewGen Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Centre is applicable to industries like healthcare services, chemicals, hardware, aeronautical/defense, IT, AR/VR, construction, design, food and beverages, textiles, nanotechnology, and renewable and non-renewable energy sources, among others. It provides a one-time non-recurring loan of up to 25 lakhs to finance startup units.

2. AIC – Headed by the Atal Innovation Mission, the Atal Incubation Centres provide grant-in-aid of Rs. 10 Cr to every AIC. The duration of the grant is a maximum of 5 years. Set up under the NITI aayog, the purpose of AICs will be to provide financial aid and infrastructure assistance to different startups in sectors like chemicals, technology hardware, healthcare & life sciences, aeronautics/aerospace & defence, agriculture, AI, AR/VR (augmented + virtual reality), automotive, telecommunication & networking, construction, design, non-renewable energy, renewable energy, green technology, fintech, Internet of Things, nanotechnology, and food & beverages, among others. Conducting training and entrepreneurship workshops, organizing inspirational programs, enabling access to necessary infrastructure, prototyping or research facilities, as well as creating a group of mentors to guide the entrepreneurs, are some of the tasks that an AIC is expected to perform.

3. MUDRA – The Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency or MUDRA, is a flagship program by the government of India to provide funds to micro and small enterprises. What sets MUDRA apart from other loan schemes is the fact that no collateral is required to avail this loan. It is applicable for manufacturing, trading, and even allied agricultural services. It has 3 modules, Shishu (loan up to 50,000), Kishor (Loan between 50,000 and 5 lakh) and Tarun (Loan between 5 lakh and 10 lakh).

4. NABARD – The National Bank for Agriculture And Rural Development, or NABARD, for short, is primarily aimed towards providing credit benefits to agriculture as well as other cottage and village industries. It also provides finance to lending institutions in villages. With schemes for food processing plants and integrated rural development, NABARD works in conjunction with the RBI to implement and regulate financial assistance in rural areas. Its Dairy Entrepreneurship Development scheme offers up to 90% of the project cost (minimum 10 lakhs to maximum 150 lakhs) to budding entrepreneurs.

5. CLCSS – Under MSME, the Credit Linked Capital Subsidy Scheme is a means to provide subsidy to manufacturing units who have upgraded their machinery with state-of-the-art equipment. This scheme is meant to encourage manufacturing units to buy the latest equipment, and facilitate technology upgradation. The way this works is that any SSI unit which has upgraded its machinery can apply for a 15% subsidy on a loan amount of up to 1 Cr.

6. M-SIPS – The Modified Special Incentive Package Scheme provides capital subsidies to manufacturing and electronic units in sectors of technology hardware, IoT, automotive, renewable and non-renewable energy sources, nanotechnology, green technology, and aerospace and defense industries. Under this scheme, there’s a provision for 20% capital subsidy in SEZ, and 25% in non-SEZ, for business units in manufacturing and electronics.

7. Loan for Rooftop Solar PV Power Projects – Headed by the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA), this scheme promotes renewable energy development by providing support for solar PV projects on rooftops. The IREDA will provide 70% of the project cost, while the entrepreneur will contribute the remaining 30% of the amount. In some projects, where the unit has a great track record, higher benefits, and more productivity, the IREDA may extend the loan amount to 75% of the project cost. The loan has to be repaid in a maximum of 9 years.

8. SMILE – The SIDBI Make in India Soft Loan Fund for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises provides soft loans to MSME units at reasonable terms, to meet the debt-equity ratio of a unit or to help in its growth and expansion. The loan is applicable for a maximum period of 3 years. The amount disbursed varies on the category the unit falls under, with 10% or a maximum of 20 lakhs for General category, and 15% or a maximum of 30 lakhs for SC/ST, PwD, and women.

9. Multiplier Grants Scheme 

Powered by the Ministry Of Electronics and Information Technology, Multiplier Grants Scheme (MGS) aims to encourage collaborative R&D between industry and academics/ R&D institutions for the development of products and packages. Financial support up to twice the amount provided by the industry is given for R&D for the development of products that can be commercialized at the institution level. The proposal is to be submitted jointly by the institution and the industry supporting it.

10. Startup India

The action plan of this initiative is focussing on three areas:

• Simplification and Handholding.
• Funding Support and Incentives.
• Industry-Academia Partnership and Incubation.

An additional area relating to this initiative is to discard restrictive States Government policies within this domain, such as License Raj, Land Permissions, Foreign Investment Proposals, and Environmental Clearances. It was organized by The Department for promotion of industry and internal trade