Six months on, UT startups yet to receive policy benefits

Even though the Chandigarh Startup Policy was rolled out over six months ago, young entrepreneurs are still unable to access its facilities.

According to officials, the UT Industries Department has prepared a portal and finalised all guidelines, which have been submitted to the High Powered Committee (HPC) headed by the Chief Secretary.

The committee is likely to give approval to the guidelines early next week and the portal would be launched immediately after that, stated the officials. The portal will serve as a single-window platform for startup registration and accessing policy benefits. It will enable startups to apply for various incentives and facilities announced under the policy, which is aimed at creating a thriving startup ecosystem in the city by offering financial support, incubation assistance and tax exemptions.

The UT Administration had on April 29 notified the Chandigarh Startup Policy-2025 with the aim of supporting talented and tech-driven youth and making the City Beautiful a ‘startup hub’ like Pune, Bengaluru and Ahmedabad. For effective implementation, the HPC, chaired by the Chief Secretary, will guide strategic decisions, monitor progress and amend the policy, if needed. The Policy Monitoring and Implementation Committee (PMIC), chaired by the Secretary, Industries, will be responsible for operational approvals, disbursement of incentives and monitoring activities.

The administration has earmarked an annual corpus of Rs 10 crore for the effective implementation of the policy for the next five years. The policy also mandates annual government startup festivals to encourage innovation and youth participation. The startup status will cease after 10 years or once a company crosses an annual turnover of Rs 100 crore. Complaints and fraud cases will be examined by a high-level committee.

The administration aims to position Chandigarh as a leading innovation-driven startup ecosystem nurturing entrepreneurship, promoting R&D and driving inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

The policy has been designed to enable the creation and growth of over 200 startups over the next five years, promote a culture of research, innovation and entrepreneurship among youth, women, transgenders and under-represented groups. It is also aimed at facilitating access to funding, incubation, mentorship and infrastructure for startups across various stages of their lifecycle and strengthening incubators and academic institutions, driving synergy between industry and academia for fostering innovation.