19 states implemented startup policies: Commerce ministry

As many as 19 state governments have implemented startup policies with a view to promote budding entrepreneurs in the country, the commerce and industry ministry today said.

In January 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled a slew of incentives to boost startup businesses, offering them a tax holiday, inspector raj-free regime and capital gains tax exemption as part of the startup action plan.

"At the time of launch of this initiative, only four states had a started startup policy, whereas 19 states have implemented startup policies now," the ministry said in a statement.

To further give an impetus to the momentum, state/UT startup ranking framework has been launched in February.

The key objective of the ranking is to encourage states to take proactive steps towards strengthening the startup ecosystems within their jurisdictions.

To promote innovation among startups, the ministry provides 80 percent rebate in patent filing fees and 50 percent on trademark filing fees.

"423 patent facilitators and 596 trademark facilitators have been nominated for this purpose. The initiative has benefited 671 patent applicants, 941 trademark applicants along with 144 expedited examinations," it said.

Further, the ministry said international bilateral cooperation with countries having strong startup ecosystems - Israel, Singapore, Portugal and Sweden - have been entered into by Startup India Hub to facilitate market access and promote investments.