NASSCOM has selected 37 startups for providing them technical mentoring support. The startups have an all-access to all mentoring programs under NASSCOM 10,000 Startups Program.

Sequoia India has shortlisted 10 NSA 2020 Finalists for dedicated mentoring with Sequioa’s investment team.

Government connect program with Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education and its aligned bodies was conducted for providing procurement and pilot opportunities to NSA 2020 Finalists.

9 startups presented their offerings to 6 attached bodies and 1 PSU.

4 startups received on-spot connection request from participating officers. 15 expressions of interest to engage with startups were received in post-event feedback.

A detailed masterclass on 'ESOPs: Structuring and ESOPs and Incentive Plans and for Attracting Talent' was conducted in association with Khaitan Legal Associates.100+ startups attended the workshop.

• The workshop covered the regulatory guide to ESOPs i.e. ESOP provisions under Companies Act, 2013 and Taxation of ESOPs.
• The process and stages of issuance of ESOPs were discussed.
• The workshop also covered how ESOPs act as a band-aid for Startups.

A dedicated Q&A session was conducted to resolve the concerns of the startups.

22 NSA 2020 Finalists from Agriculture, Education, Energy, Food and Finance Sectors presented to more than 30 investors.

10 connections were facilitated.

Government connect program with Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MOP&NG) and its aligned Government entities was conducted for providing procurement and pilot opportunities to NSA 2020 Finalists.

14 startups pitched their offerings to more than 70 officers from 14 different major Oil and Gas CPSUs.

40 on the spot connection requests for further engagement were obtained. MRPL reached out to a startup for a detailed proposal. HPCL has requested startups to enrol through their startups' registration process.

Government connect program with Ministry of Power and its aligned Government entities was conducted for providing procurement and pilot opportunities to NSA 2020 Finalists.

11 startups pitched their offerings to officials from 10 Public Sector Power Companies and other bodies.

NTPC scheduled a detailed presentation with 4 startups which saw more than 20 senior technical officers' participation.

FICCI extended complimentary booth to all NSA 2020 Finalists from the Fintech sector for FICCI’s ‘Fintech Expo 2021'.

A Global Venture Capital Connect event was conducted by NASSCOM, Startup India and the Korean Venture Capital Association, which saw a high turnout and interest shown by South Korean VCs in the Indian startup ecosystem.

• Salon of Innovations: Croatian Chamber of Economy, County Chamber Bjelovar conducted the 8th Salon of Innovations Bjelovar 2020- Virtual Exhibition of Innovations, where 20 NSA 2020 Finalists were given virtual booths free of cost, to present their innovations to the Croatian business community.
• India-Croatia Startup Webinar: Embassy of India in Croatia, Startup India, and Invest India organized a webinar on exploring India and Croatia as Potential Markets for Startups, which was graced by the Ambassador of India to Croatia, H.E. Mr. Raj Kumar Srivastava. 4 NSA 2020 Finalists got the opportunity to present in this webinar.

A detailed masterclass on 'Valuation and Due Diligence and Guidance' was conducted in association with IVCA and Duff and Phelps.50+ startups attended the workshop.

• Guidance on valuation for startups from an impact investor was imparted by Sushma Kaushik, Partner, Aavishkaar Group.
• Perspectives from an early stage consumer brand startup investor by Dipanjan Basu, Partner & CFO Fireside Ventures.
• Valuation Masterclass – Valuation Frameworks for Young Startup by Duff & Phelps.
• Due Diligence Masterclass – Essentials of the financial due diligence process for startups by Duff & Phelps.

A dedicated Q&A session was conducted to resolve the concerns of the startups.

As a part of the Union Budget Speech for 2019-20, the Hon’ble Finance Minister, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, announced a TV program exclusively for startups in the country. In line with the announcement and under the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat, DPIIT in partnership with Doordarshan curated a focused program to highlight the best innovations in the country.

The program was launched on 16th January 2021 by the Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, during 'Prarambh: Startup India International Summit'. It aims to highlight stories of the grassroot-level entrepreneurs of the country and the winners of the ‘National Startup Awards 2020’. The show is being telecasted in both Hindi and English across Doordarshan network channels. It is a one-hour weekly program.

12 episodes have been telecasted over the past 3 months covering stories of 31 NSA 2020 Winners.The program has helped the startups in increasing their overall credibility and visibility at the national level.

Click below to view all episodes:

• The inaugural event hosted by DPIIT, Embassy of India, Washington, D.C. and US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) was graced by Dr. Mukesh Aghi, President and CEO, USISPF, H.E. Taranjit Singh Sandhu, Ambassador of India to the United States, and Mr. Anil Agrawal, Additional Secretary, DPIIT.
• The highlight of the event was the fireside chat with Mr. John Chambers, Founder & CEO, JC2 Ventures, Chairman, USISPF, who shared his valuable insights on entrepreneurship and how he views the future of the Indian startup ecosystem. This was followed by address by Mr. Anil Advani, Founder and Managing Partner, Inventus Law, on cross-border company formation and regulation around the same, and Mr. Vinod Muthukrishnan, Chief Growth Officer (CCBU), CISCO shedding light on his startup’s journey from inception to acquisition.

24 NSA 2020 Finalists from Agriculture and Health Sectors presented to more than 60 investors.

28 connections were facilitated.

All NSA 2020 Finalists were provided complimentary access to exhibit at 'FICCI Annual Expo 2020'.

All NSA 2020 Finalists received all-access pass to TiE Global Summit 2020, which included closed-door pitching opportunities.

• India-Sweden Innovation Day :The 7th India Sweden Innovation Day was organized by India Unlimited, in association with Startup India, Embassy of India in Sweden, Sweden-India Business Council (SIBC), and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). 6 NSA 2020 Finalists were identified by SIBC to showcase their solutions to stakeholders from India and Sweden.
• Sweden Mentor Connect: It is a closed-door mentorship series to encourage cross border knowledge exchange and prepare entrepreneurs for expansion to new markets. 3 Indo-Sweden Mentor Connect sessions have been conducted to prepare Indian Startups to explore Sweden as a market, with participation from over 150 startups for mentorship, handholding, and query resolution.
• STHLM (Stockholm) Fintech Week: 4 NSA 2020 Finalists from the financial services sector were selected to attend the Sthlm Fintech Week.

A 'Government Pitching Workshop' by Startup India, Kerala Startup Mission and Kritsnam Technologies on best practices to be followed while pitching to Government entities.

10 NSA 2020 Finalists from Food and Finance Sectors presented to more than 70 investors.

43 connections were facilitated.

Meetings with NSA 2020 Winners and 33 VC members facilitated by IVCA.

Mumbai Angels (MA) shared its standard terms and guidelines with all NSA 2020 Finalists. 15 startups expressed interest for fund raising through them. MA interacted with all 15 startups and due diligence process for 4 startups was initiated.

2 startups have completed due diligence process and are in advance stages of the fundraising process.

'Self-Certification Compliance Regime Workshop' by Mr. Avinash Kumar, Scientist C from Ministry of Labour and Employment (MoLE), who gave a detailed overview of the Shram Suvidha Portal.

• Startup India has partnered with Embassy of India, Tokyo to help Indian startups with an exclusive opportunity to explore Japan as a potential business destination.
• Pitching Sessions are being organised across the 12 NSA 2020 sectors. 3 pitching sessions have been conducted for Energy, Agriculture and Health sectors, where 10 NSA 2020 Finalists presented.
• A microsite dedicated to India-Japan investor connect sessions has been created for all relevant stakeholders.

Startup India has partnered with Embassy of India, Tokyo to help Indian startups with an exclusive opportunity to explore Japan as a potential business destination. Pitching Sessions are being organised across the 12 NSA 2020 sectors.

So far, 3 pitching sessions have been conducted for Energy, Agriculture and Health sectors, where 10 NSA 2020 Finalists presented.

'IPR Support Workshop' by CIPAM and Mr. Priyank Gupta, empaneled as an IPR facilitator for Startup India Scheme, on how to avail patent/trademark fee rebate, put application in fast-track mode, avail help from IPR facilitators, and IPR application evaluation process.

'GeM Registration Workshop' by Mr. Shashank Sharma, GeM Business Facilitator and Senior Trainer, on how DPIIT-recognized startups can register on GeM as sellers, and sell their products/services directly to government entities.

• Tax Exemption and Associated Benefits Workshop by Dr. Sanjeeva Kumar Majumdar, Manager, NRDC on how to avail tax exemption under Section 80IAC, Section 56(2)(viib), Section 54GB (capital gain transfers), and ESOPs, among others.
• 22 NSA finalists have been granted exemption under Section 80-IAC as of March 2021.
• Intimation regarding receipt of declaration has been sent to 37 NSA 2020 Finalists as of 7th April, 2021.

• India-Netherlands Startup/Scaleup Cyber-Security Mission:A select few of the best startups/ scale-ups from the Netherlands and India were presented with an opportunity to pitch their solutions in front of Indian and Dutch corporates like Shell, Phillips, JP Morgan, and Tech Mahindra. 3 NSA 2020 Finalists from cyber-security sector were given an opportunity to participate in the pitching session. This session was conducted as part of India-Netherlands Cybersecurity Mission in partnership with Data Security Council of India, Embassy of the Netherlands, Hague Security Delta.
• Indo-Dutch Talks: Startup India, Invest India and the Embassy of the Netherlands in India have collaborated to launch Indo-Dutch Talks. The program is a series of focused sessions on various essential topics to prepare Indian Startups for market expansion in the Netherlands. The program launch was graced by H.E. Marten van den Berg, Ambassador of the Netherlands to India, Nepal and Bhutan and Mr. Michiel Sweers, Director, Innovation and Knowledge, Ministry of Economic Affairs & Climate Policy, Netherlands, and Mr. Deepak Bagla, MD & CEO, Invest India. There was a panel discussion on 'Exploring the Dutch Gateway for Indian Startups' with the country heads and senior leaders from Unilever, Philips, Shell, TCS and HCL. The 1st mentorship session of the series, 'Exploring the Netherlands Market', was conducted on 24th March 2021, and had more than 80 startups participating with mentors from the Dutch ecosystem.

Startup India Showcase is an online discovery platform for the most promising startups of the country chosen through various DPIIT and Startup India programs, exhibited in the form of virtual profiles.

The startups showcased on the platform have distinctly emerged as the best in their fields. These innovations have been handpicked by experts and have gone through multiple rounds of screening and evaluation.

As of now, 34 NSA 2020 Finalists have profiles on the Startup India Online Showcase. To visit, click below:

Startup India Showcase