Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal speaks at the reception and dinner hosted by the Ambassador of India to the US.
Credit: X/@PiyushGoyal
New Delhi: Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday said that the second edition of the Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS) may be dedicated entirely for deep tech investment, particularly early stage investments.
“Our startup fund of funds’ second edition, we are hoping to dedicate almost entirely to Deep Tech investments providing risk capital to help innovators retain ownership and develop indigenous technologies, " the Minister said addressing an event here.
"... so that our friends from deep tech ecosystem do not end up selling large part of their equity at very early stage to funds or VCs, to foreign funds and are able to maintain large part of their ownership for future rounds and for maturing their technology going forward," he said adding that Indian tech startups are getting huge valuations worldwide.
Goyal said the government’s proposed Rs 1 lakh crore Anusandhan Fund would provide long-tenure, low-cost loans to promote innovation.
The Minister said that for India's growth, we must reduce its dependence on foreign technologies, foreign weapons, foreign energy sources, or foreign critical technologies."
It's important for the country to have resilient supply chains, control over key technologies and reduce overdependence on certain geographies, he said.
He said the clarion call to promote swadeshi products is not just about making in India, designing or developing in India as it is key for the country's long-term growth and sovereignty.
"This decade in fact has given us several wake up calls, starting from Covid, how important it is to have resilient supply chains, to have your own technologies, control over technologies, control over essential supplies in critical areas.
"How important it is to decouple in certain sectors and certain very important subjects, from overdependence on certain geographies. And therefore India today has resolved to move away from just being the back office of the world, or software provider of the world to become a global engine of innovation," he said.