India aspires to be among the top 25 in GII: Piyush Goyal

NEW DELHI: On Monday, January 10, Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, urged stakeholders in the innovation ecosystem to work together to move India into the top 25 of the Global Innovation Index, up from 46th place in 2021. Goyal, speaking virtually at the ‘Startup India Innovation Week Launch,’ said India’s meteoric rise in the Global Innovation Index from 76th place in 2014 to 46th place in 2021 can be largely attributed to startups.

According to Goyal, India’s businesses have shifted their mentality from “can do” to “will do.” Startup India, which began as a mission to stimulate innovation, has evolved into a national participation and consciousness revolution, he said. ‘Make in India,’ ‘Innovate in India,’ and ‘Mentor the Next Generation of Entrepreneurs,’ Goyal highlighted three aims for Indian entrepreneurs.

He believes that Indian startups need to become much more resilient in order to effectively prevent and overcome crisis scenarios like the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Goyal, India recognises roughly four enterprises every hour, with 45 per cent coming from Tier II and III cities. Women are leaders of 46 per cent of all start-up companies, he added.

According to a statement released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry at the outset of the week-long virtual event honouring India’s innovation and entrepreneurs, over 2 lakh jobs were generated by startups in 2021 alone. Over 6 lakh employment were created by startups between 2018 and 2021.