Administrative Council approves Start-up Policy for J&K

Jammu, Feb 22: Administrative Council (AC) which met here under the chairmanship of Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha, approved J&K start-up policy 2024-27 in supersession to the Start-up Policy notified in the year 2018. The policy has the objective of setting up 2000 new Start-ups in Jammu & Kashmir in the next 5 years.
Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar, Advisor to the Lieutenant Governor; Atal Dulloo, Chief Secretary; Mandeep Kumar Bhandari, Principal Secretary to Lieutenant Governor attended the meeting.
The Government of Jammu &Kashmir will setup a Venture Capital Fund of Rs. 250 Crores and will infuse maximum of Rs. 25 Crores as an initial fund to this venture capital fund.
The venture capital fund so created shall invest primarily in recognized start-ups of Jammu & Kashmir. The Department shall work out detailed modalities for creation of venture fund and its usage in consultation with Finance Department.
The department may also work out a mechanism to facilitate allotment of land to start-ups having good potential for growth. There is also a provision of one-time assistance as Seed Funding up to Rs.20 lakhs ( 4 equal instalments) to be provided to start-ups recognized by JKEDI which is nodal agency for start –ups. For seed funding there is capping of 25 start-ups per year which is a decision based upon available budget and desire to support a manageable number of start-ups effectively.
The Government is committed to establish 2000 start-ups in three years but by providing seed funding to a smaller number of carefully selected start-ups, the Government can prioritize quantity over quality for long term economic growth. This will also ensure that the resources are utilized efficiently. The budgetary support for implementation of Start-up Policy for a period of three years will be Rs. 39.60 Crores.
In order to nurture and inspire entrepreneurial talent of J&K by creating a vibrant and robust start-up eco-system in the UT. The Government felt that there is a need to re-furbish the existing start-up policy issued in the year 2018 and bring new policy suited to meet model challenges in this sector in the UT of J&K.
The feedback received from various stakeholder consultations by Industries and Commerce Department, need was felt to strengthen the incubation and acceleration eco-system for start-ups which has been addressed in the current policy.
The implementation of this scheme in UT shall be monitored by a High Powered Committee headed by Chief Secretary and implemented by a Task Force Committee headed by Administrative Secretary, Industries & Commerce.
The policy provides for providing entrepreneurship facilities to students, women and support to the entrepreneurs through Government/ Private/ High Net worth individuals for setting up of start-ups.