NEW DELHI: Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu ranked best states in providing a strong ecosystem for startups, according to the latest rankings released on Tuesday. Among Union territories and smaller states, Himachal topped the list.
The rankings put together by the department for promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT) keep Bihar and Haryana in the same bracket of "aspiring leaders". Although the former is considered a laggard on several economic parameters, it is seen to have undertaken several steps to support startups, just like Haryana where Gurugram is home to several MNCs and startups.
Each state was ranked which was then converted into percentiles and similar placed states were put in one segment. States in the 90-100 percentile were classified as "best performers", while those with 30-49 were "aspiring leaders". Delhi, Chhattisgarh and Jammu & Kashmir - which managed under 30 percentile - were put in the "emerging startups ecosystem" group.
Government officials, however, said that too much should not be read into it as the idea was to encourage states to compete and perform better and almost all states and UTs were working to develop a good ecosystem.
Apart from assessment on 25 action points ranging from institutional support to funding support and access to market, 33 states and UTs, were also gauged on the basis of feedback, both qualitative and quantitative.
In the initial years, DPIIT used to rank states based on the assessment, but for the last few years it has done away with that and instead clubs them based on the score.
Addressing an event where the rankings were released and startups were awarded, commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal said that once a novelty has now become an integral part of the national mainstream.
He identified tourism as a sector with untapped function and encouraged them to explore innovative ideas around sustainable tourism. Artificial intelligence was another focus area, he said, adding that startups had made a substantial contribution in fintech, medtech, agriculture and drones.