1000 Plus Registrations At India Startup Week, Organised By Indian Chamber Of Commerce

Kolkata: As a responsible industry body of the country, the Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has always partnered with the Government of India to facilitate various developmental initiatives. "ICC India Startup Week" is one such flagship initiative of ICC to foster growth and employment for the youth in India.

This year, ICC India Startup Week was conducted virtually from 4th to 9th October 2021.

The week-long programme involved many thought-provoking deliberations, exchange of ideas among the stakeholders, sharing of information, state policies, investment pitching, etc. Both private and public sector players took equal part in this programme and tried to take advantage of this forum.

The structure of the programme was quite comprehensive. Apart from various Indian states, some foreign countries also took part in the programme with the bouquet of incentives and facilities on offer and tried to attract investment from the Indian startup community. One of the main reasons behind this may have been the fantastic resilience that Indian startups showed against the headwinds of Covid 19. The global business fraternity is now highly in favour of creating "startup ecosystems", which are "small but steady".

"ICC India Startup Week 2021" has touched almost all the aspects of the "startup ecosystem" in India.

Starting with Fintech, Edutech, and DeepTech, the discussion reached the arenas of HealthTech and Agri-Tech. Even relatively new areas like defence and construction have also come under the purview of discussion. Representatives from all spheres related to the startup ecosystem participated, including Incubation Centres, State Investment Promotion Boards, Angel Networks, Banks, Healthcare Consultants, Academia – representatives participated from all spheres related to the startup ecosystem. There were pitching sessions by private players, master classes by experts, etc.

To summarise, the entire 6-day long programme zeroed in on handholding Indian startups in all possible ways. In every step of forming a startup, from idea to execution, calculating financial requirements, sources of funds, utilising government-provided incentives, getting help from industry experts to operate with efficiency, etc., were all part of the discussions held.

The outcome of the programme has been impressive in terms of some statistics. The programme included six (6) Indian states (Odisha, Karnataka, Meghalaya, Uttar Pradesh, Puducherry, and Kerala), as well as four (4) foreign countries (South Africa, Nigeria, South Korea, and Russia).

Remarkably, an MoU was signed between ICC and Innovate Durban to strengthen the bilateral relationship between India and South Africa in the spheres of innovation, artificial intelligence, startups, and technology, benefiting startups from both countries. A total of 125 startups participated in the pitching sessions, and more than 1000 stakeholders registered to attend the program.

Commenting on the outcome, Mr Vikash Agarwal, President of, Indian Chamber of Commerce said, "We think that the programme has really served its purpose. It has been a great encouraging experience for us, and we hope to continue with this endeavour in the future."