In a bid to give boost to the startup ecosystem in the state, the Karnataka government has joined hands with a wide range of companies including IBM, Amazon and Microsoft to offer a slew of benefits to startups.
Under the initiative called as the Startup Booster Kit, IBM will offer a suite of cloud services including SoftLayer and Bluemix worth $10,000, Amazon will offer $3,000 of cloud credits, and Knowlarity and Exotel will offer cloud telephony services at discounted rates. The state-run BSNL will offer discounted rates for accessing the internet.
“With this, we hope to continue as the torch bearer of the IT and biotech industries in India and we will continue to be the startup capital of India. We are already into the top 15 startup ecosystems in the world and the aim is to break into the top 10,” TOI report quoted state minister for IT Priyank Kharge as saying.
The Global Startup Ecosystem Ranking Report 2015 puts the number of startups in Bengaluru at 4,900. It is the only Indian city ranked among the 20 startup ecosystems in the world.
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The state government envisages supporting 20,000 startups through its startup policy by 2020 and generate 6 lakh direct and 12 lakh indirect jobs. It has also set up a Startup Cell within the Karnataka Biotechnology and Information Technology Services (K-BITS) that offers a slew of incentives and concessions to startups registered with it.
The government recently set aside Rs 50 lakh for entrepreneurs who want to build a proof-of-concept around an idea they have.
Kharge said that he will organize every month a Startup Open House where startups and those associated with the industry can proactively engage with the government to share their concerns and come up with time-bound resolutions.
The first open house is scheduled for August 16.
The government also said it is creating a Rs 200 crore fund-of-funds that will invest in venture funds that further invest in technology-based startups. “We want to mobilize Rs 2,000 crore to invest in startups along with participation from the private sector by 2020,” Kharge said.