J&K to come up with new policy to 'facilitate 3,000 startups in five years'

The Jammu and Kashmir administration will soon announce a new amended startup policy that will facilitate at least 3,000 startups in five years.

The new startup policy will take inputs from the policies of states like Karnataka, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu to ensure that it will help to tackle the challenges and address the concerns of the market.

“The new policy will be announced hopefully within two months. The existing policy launched in 2018 has some lacunae which we are addressing in the new policy. It is entrepreneur-friendly and will facilitate 3,000 startups in five years,” said Ajaz Ahmad Bhat, director, Entrepreneur Development Institute. Bhat was speaking during a Startup Mentorship Program here in Srinagar.


Bhat said that under the new policy, Rs 100 crore will be available for startups and a one-time support of Rs 10 lakh could be given to any potential startup.

During the function, several entrepreneurs from Kashmir pitched their ideas before potential investors and mentors from The Indus Entrepreneurs, a nonprofit organization devoted to entrepreneurs in all industries, at all stages, from incubation, throughout the entrepreneurial lifecycle. They urged the aspiring entrepreneurs to further improve their pitches and guided them to relevant government schemes that could help their ventures at early stages.

“The startup and entrepreneurship scenario in Kashmir is at a very nascent stage at this time and needs mentorship and guidance. We are focusing on tier two cities like Srinagar to encourage the startup scene here and we will soon be holding workshops for this as well,” said Mahavir Sharma, investor and mentor from TIE.

He suggested that the entrepreneurs in Kashmir focus on the agricultural technology sector which will help the local economy and create employment as well. “I also feel that tech companies can operate from Kashmir considering the environmental sensitivity of the region,” said Sharma.

“We will take all necessary steps to create an enabling environment for the potential entrepreneur and this interaction is just a beginning," said Sheikh Ashiq, former president of Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industries, who had organized the function.