Bengaluru: The startups community seems happy with its share of the Union Budget: Tax holiday for three years, speedy registration of new companies and allocation of Rs 500 crore under the Stand-Up India scheme for scheduled caste, scheduled tribe and women entrepreneurs.
Besides the 100 percent tax deduction for three years for startups set up between April 2016 and March 2019, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley announced the setting up of a national hub in the Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) in partnership with industry associations to provide professional support to scheduled caste/scheduled tribes (SC/ST) entrepreneurs and promised to make sure companies were registered in one day.
“It will be interesting to see how efficiently the Start Up India funds are utilized. This will definitely be something all startups and investors will be looking for. As the markets and demand for digital startups grow, they are bound to attract monetary backing,” said Ms Ankita Tandon, CEO, CouponDunia.
Noting that the startup segment is a very key one for the tech industry, leading to jobs, value and wealth creation, Ms K Jaya Kumar, Vice President and Managing Director of Walmart GTS India, said the tax exemption on capital gains for the first three years of setting up a company would certainly encourage it.
Mr Shashank ND, founder of Practo, the country’s largest healthcare technology startup, welcomed the easing of the registration process and the three year tax holiday for startups. "This will allow speedy establishment of a venture and help startups focus on building their products and services without worrying about profits or losses,” he said
Ms Geetha Kannan, MD of The Anita Borg Institute, a non-profit organisation for women in technology, described the allocation of '500 crore under the Stand-Up India scheme for SC/ST and women entrepreneurs as a” very positive step.”
“Now it’s up to all the women entrepreneurs out there to capitalize on this opportunity,” she added.
