Entrepreneurs play an important role in the economic development of a country. Successful entrepreneurs innovate, bring new products and concepts to the market, improve market efficiency, build wealth, create jobs, and enhance economic growth. De novo firms that unleash creative destruction shift surpluses from rent-seeking large producers to consumers and broader society.
INITIATIVES TO BOOST ENTREPRENEURSHIP
- MUDRA Scheme
- SETU
- Atal Innovation Mission
- Start-up India scheme
- ASPIRE scheme for rural entrepreneurship
- India Aspiration fund under SIDBI to invest in various venture funds.
CHALLENGES TO ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN INDIA
- Lack of incentive structures for entrepreneurship
- Lack of adequate business incubators to support early-stage ventures
- Inadequate access to capital and insufficient impact assessment
- Gaps in education and work-readiness
- Lack of ease of business as compared to advanced entrepreneurial economies, issues of taxation (Angel Tax etc.), Intellectual property regime, complex labour laws and infrastructure deficit.
- A cultural affinity for stability with emphasises job security over risk taking
- Stigma over failure
- Bias against hiring non-engineers and those from non-elite universities
- Loss of top talent to other countries
- Trust deficit between government and private sector.
WAY FORWARD
- Introducing competitions to solve pressing economic and social challenges. For ex. Hackathons etc in which new budding ideas for new companies will come out.
- Harnessing corporate funds to Finance R&D
- Improving efficiency of incubators
- Increasing amount of funding to business incubators
- Creating virtual incubators
- Link funding with an institutionalised annual ranking
- Exit nonperforming incubators
- Strengthening links between incubators and corporate sector
- Reforming education sector and upskilling workers
- Providing access to entrepreneurial courses
- Strengthening Intellectual Property Rights regime
- Improving ease of doing business.
Aatmanirbhar Bharat provides a truly watershed moment in our history to ignite the innovative entrepreneurial spirit of New India by focusing on strengthening the above pillars.