Start-ups should focus on developing content in Indic languages, seek solutions with larger social and economic impact, promote themselves in every district, create innovation zones and adopt global best practices to make India the top start-up ecosystem in the world, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said.

“Be it a fisherman’s son from Chennai or a boatman’s daughter from Kashmir, they all want to bring prosperity to their families and to their people and so are thinking bigger and bolder,” he said, while presenting the National Startup Awards 2021 on Saturday.

2,177 applications received

A total of 46 start-ups, one incubator and one accelerator won various awards. As many as 2,177 applications were received from start-ups across 49 sub-sectors, in addition to applications from 53 incubators and six accelerators, according to a statement issued by the Commerce and Industry Ministry.

The applicants included 863 women-led ventures, 414 innovations for combating Covid-19, and 253 start-ups based in rural areas.

The award was the result of five years of “blood and sweat” for Gautam Chopra, Founder & CEO of BeatO, an innovative healthcare app which was one of the winners.

“This is a wonderful recognition of BeatO’s purpose and commitment to control diabetes and reduce health complications... we shall continue to build innovative solutions to offer quality affordable care for the largest healthcare problem in India — diabetes,” said Chopra in a release.

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) will handhold the start-up awards finalists across seven tracks including investor connect, mentorship, government connect, capacity development, corporate connect, brand showcase, and unicorn engagement, DPIIT Secretary Anurag Jain said.

“Our journey together doesn’t end here with just awards, we will walk step-by-step with you in this journey,” he said.

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