New Delhi : Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh on Sunday said the government proposes to set up a mechanism to nurture and monitor the progress of startups as their number crosses one lakh.
Tantra will closely follow the growth of startups, see how to sustain them so that they do not lose out, especially those that have received technical and financial support from the government, Singh said.
The minister said startups have seen a shift from IT to biotech and earth sciences in the last few years as new opportunities open up in ocean science.
“There is an age factor, I have seen a scientist setting up a startup after retirement; The second is high qualification, you just need to be an innovator, with an inherent quest for creativity,” Singh said.
The Minister addressed the closing ceremony and award ceremony of the National Technology Week Exhibition at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi on Sunday.
Singh presented the National Technology Awards for successful commercialization of innovative indigenous technology.
The National Technology Week began on 11 May, the 25th anniversary of the Pokhran-II nuclear tests conducted in 1998. The National Technology Day was initiated in 1999 by the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to honor Indian scientists, engineers and technologists who worked for India’s scientific and technological progress and ensured the successful conduct of the Pokhran tests.
S Chandrasekhar, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, said that each startup participating in the exhibition was very conscious of sustainable development.
“By Amrtakala, we hope to halt all greenhouse emissions and minimize damage to the environment,” he said.
Principal Scientific Advisor Ajay Kumar Sood said that there should be Startup Day and Week on the lines of National Technology Day and Week.
(with inputs from agencies)
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