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The government is working to leverage the procurement process to promote startups, a top official of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade said on Tuesday. Speaking at the curtain-raiser event for National Startup Awards 6.0, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) Secretary Amardeep Singh Bhatia said that there is a need for more private initiatives to engage with startups and bring them into their supply chain network. "We are also working with other agencies to see how government procurement can also be better used for promoting startups by providing them with at least early access to demand," he said. Elaborating on the move to enhance participation of startups in government procurement, DPIIT Additional Secretary Ateesh Kumar Singh said that there are already certain facilities available in the form of relaxations to the GFR (General Financial Rules). "Also, here are certain circulars which have been put out by various agencies to make the pathway into the government procurement process easier. The partaking of those benefits still remains a challenge. It is there where we are trying to make sure that the offerings are available to them," he said. Singh said that a lot of problems also occur due to information asymmetry. "One part of the problem is to tell people what is available. The second part of the problem is partaking in those things. We are also trying to address challenges in our existing system. We are working with various ministries, including the Department of Finance, Public Enterprises and MSME. This is ongoing work and we will come up with a new framework," he said. He said that the number of startups in the country has grown to over 2.5 lakh, with more than half of them located in tier 3 and smaller towns. Under the 6th Edition of the National Startup Awards (NSA 6.0), winning startups across the 20 sectoral categories and the two startup-focused special categories will be eligible for a cash prize of Rs 25 lakh per category, subject to the applicable award guidelines. The student innovator and aspiring entrepreneur award will carry a total prize pool of Rs 25 lakh across four sub-categories. In addition to monetary recognition, the National Startup Awards seek to facilitate mentorship, investor engagement, market access, industry partnerships and enhanced visibility within India’s startup ecosystem. The 20 categories will also include three special categories comprising women-led startups, startups from the north-eastern region and student innovators or aspiring entrepreneurs.
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