Number of startups in textiles sector clocks steady rise in last 5 years: Minister

New Delhi, March 11: The number of new entities recognised as startups in the textiles sector each year by the Centre's Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has been steadily increasing over the last five years from 204 in 2020 to 703 in 2023, and 765 in 2024, according to information tabled in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

Under the 'Startup India' initiative, the government is implementing three flagship Schemes, -- Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS), Start-up India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) and Credit Guarantee Scheme for startups (CGSS) -- to support startups across categories and sectors at various stages of their business cycle, Union Minister of Textiles, Giriraj Singh, said in a written reply to a question in the Lower House.FFS was approved and established in 2016 to catalyse venture capital investments and is operationalised by Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), which provides capital to Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)-registered Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) which, in turn, invest in startups.

AIFs supported under FFS are required to invest at least two times of the amount committed under FFS in startups.

SISFS provides financial assistance to seed stage startups through incubators while CGSS is implemented for enabling collateral free loans to startups through eligible financial institutions. CGSS is operationalised by the National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company (NCGTC) Limited and has been operationalised from April 1, 2023, the minister said.

The government is also implementing various schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel Parks (PM-MITRA) which seeks to create a modern, integrated large scale, world class industrial ecosystem, which will help in attracting investments and boosting employment.

Production-Linked Incentives (PLI), National technical Textile Mission (NTTM) are two other schemes for employment generation within the textile sector, the minister explained.

The Office of Development Commissioner (Handicrafts) also implements two schemes, namely National Handicrafts Development Programme (NHDP) and Comprehensive Handicrafts Cluster Development Scheme (CHCDS) for overall development and promotion of handicrafts sector across the country.

Both schemes include various kind of skill development programmes such as Guru Shishya Hastshilp Prashikshan Programme (GSHPP), Comprehensive Skill Upgradation Programme (CSUP) and Design and Technology Development Workshop (DDW) helps to create skill development in handicraft sector, the minister added.