National Startup Awards 2022
National Startup Awards 2022
Startup India has announced National Startup Awards 2022 which seek to recognize and reward outstanding startups and ecosystem enablers that have demonstrated exceptional capabilities not just in terms of financial gains but also for the measurable impact on society. This third edition of the National Startup Award is inviting applications across 17 sectors 50 sub-sectors and 7 special Categories startups. The present article briefs the procedure to apply for the National Startup Awards 2022
The objective of the National Startup Awards
The primary objective of the National Startup Awards 2022 is to recognize and reward outstanding Startups with high potential for employment generation or wealth creation, demonstrating measurable social impact.
- National Startup Awards 2022 also aims to cover flagship schemes launched by the Government of India through innovations in corresponding areas, thereby solving community problems at large
- NSA 2022 will also focus on ESG practices, climate change, and other sustainability initiatives such as blue economy, green economy, sustainable tourism, digitization, etc.
The National Startup Awards 2022 aims to look beyond the traditional thought process of measuring the success of a startup i.e., funding, financial gains for investors, etc. to parameters such as a benefit for the society, solving a key problem with some innovative solution, developing some innovative solution which is a paradigm shift in the approach in the sector/ sub-sector and creation of jobs (direct and indirect) in the country.
Benefits Offered
The benefits of applying National Startup Awards 2022, is as follows:
- The winning startup founders will get a cash prize
- The winner and the finalists shall be allowed to present their solutions to relevant public authorities and corporate for potential pilot projects and work-orders
- The winners and finalists shall be given priority for participation in various national and international startup events sponsored by DPIIT
- The recognized entities will benefit from national-level recognition
- The recognized entities being able to attract more business, financing, partnerships, and talent
- The winning startup will serve as a role model for other entities and budding entrepreneurs
- To inspire budding entrepreneurs to be purposeful and responsible about their socio-economic impact
Eligible Sectors for Startups
Startups from the following sectors and sub-sectors can apply for National Startup Awards 2022
| Sl.No | Sector | Sub – Sectors |
| 1 | Agriculture |
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| 2 | Animal Husbandry and Dairy |
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| 3 | Construction |
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| 4 | Drinking-Water |
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| 5 | Education & Skill Development |
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| 6 | Energy |
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| 7 | Enterprise Technology |
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| 8 | Environment |
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| 9 | Fintech |
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| 10 | Food Processing |
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| 11 | Health & Wellness |
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| 12 | Industry 4.0 |
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| 13 | Media & Entertainment |
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| 14 | Security |
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| 15 | Space |
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| 16 | Transport |
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| 17 | Travel |
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Special categories of Awards
As part of the National Startup Awards 2022, Special categories of Awards will be provided to the following type of Startups.
- Women-led startups
- Impact in rural areas
- Campus startup
- Manufacturing excellence
- Innovation tackling the pandemic (preventive, diagnostic, therapeutic, monitoring, digital connect, work from home solutions, etc.)
- Solution delivery or business operations in Indic languages
- Startups from North-East (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura) and Hilly States/ UT (Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, and Uttarakhand)
- Incubators
- Accelerators
Startup Incubators and Accelerators – Know the Difference
Details of Awards
Following prizes that shall be awarded to Startups, Incubators, and Accelerators
Prize for Startups
A cash prize of INR 5 lakhs shall be awarded to one winning startup in each of the subsectors
- As mentioned above, the winner and the finalists shall be allowed to present their solutions to relevant public authorities and corporates for potential pilot projects and work-orders
- The winners and finalists shall be given priority for participation in various national and international startup events sponsored by DPIIT
Prize for Incubators
A cash prize of INR 15 lakhs shall be awarded to one winning Incubator
Prize for Accelerators
A cash prize of INR 15 lakhs shall be awarded to one winning Accelerator
Eligibility Criteria for National Startups Award
Eligibility Criteria for applying National Startups Award is as follows:
Eligibility Criteria for Startups
- The startup should be a DPIIT recognized startup
- The entity must have a hardware or software product or a process solution that is present in the market.
- The entity must have all applicable trade trade-specific registrations (example: CE, FSSAI, MSME, GST Registration, etc.
- There should not have been any default in the last three years (FY 2018-19, 19-20, 20-21) by the entity or any of its promoters or any of their group
Startups that are less than a year old and do not have audited financials will be exempt from the awards
Eligibility Criteria for Incubators
- The incubator should be structured as an independent entity – a company, a public trust, or a society.
- The incubator should be operational at least for two years as of 1st January 2022.
- The incubator must have successfully graduated a minimum of 15 startups
Eligibility Criteria for Accelerators
- The accelerator should be structured as an independent entity-a Company, a Public trust, or a Society
- The accelerator should be operational at least for two years as on 1st January 2022
- . The accelerator must have successfully graduated a minimum of 10 startups
Rules for National Startup Awards 2022
- Startups/ Incubators/ Accelerators who have won in any category in any previous National Startup Awards will not be eligible
- One startup can nominate itself in maximum 2 categories
- Finalists may be subject to a legal due diligence review by independent third-party evaluators. If the individual/ organization refuse such a request, Startup India holds the right to select the next highest scoring nominee as the award winner
- By participating in the National Startup Awards, the startups, nominator, ecosystem enablers agree to the Government of India’s and its partners use of its name, URL, photos, and videos for promotional purposes on its website and other promotional material
- The decisions of the jury and the implementation committee shall be final and binding. At the discretion of the jury, awards may not be presented in any sector or sub-sector if a deserving entity is not found
- Allowances shall not be paid to any entity for travel or presentation before the jury
Documents Required
The startup needs to upload the following documents for applying National Startup Awards.
Documents for Startups
- Certificate of Incorporation/Partnership deed
- The entity must submit its certificate of incorporation or partnership deed.
- In case the startup is less than 3 years old, please upload all available financial statements.
- Partnership deed or other government accepted proof as proof for a woman founder (if applicable)
- PAN card for founder/ co-founder
- Aadhaar card for founder/co-founder
- Startup Pitch Deck (Not more than 10 slides)
- Trade specific registrations
- Audited financial statements for the past 3 years (P&L Statement + Balance Sheet + IT Return)
- Proof – In case of applying in a special category (women-led startup OR campus startup OR impact in the rural area OR potential for import substitution OR Innovation for COVID-19 (preventive, diagnostic, therapeutic, monitoring OR content delivery in Indic languages)
- 120 seconds video explaining your product or service (this video cannot be a YouTube link; it has to be made for application to National Startup Awards). The video should cover – the business model, scalability, innovation, social & economic impact on the environment
Documents for Incubators and Accelerators
- Certificate of Incorporation
- PAN card for organization
National Startup Awards 2022 –Application Procedure
The Application Procedure to apply for the National Startup Awards 2022 is as follows:
- Register on Startup India and obtain DPIIT recognition
Note: In case you have already registered on Startup India and have a DPIIT recognition number, ensure that all the details given on Startup India registration are correct as certain fields will auto-populate in the application form
- Go to the ‘National Startup Awards’ tab on Startup India Website to visit the National Startup Awards page
- Click on the ‘Apply for National Startup Awards 2022’ button visible in the right bottom
- Select the ‘Apply as Startup’ under the application closing countdown or select the category and the sub-category under which the startup wishes to apply
- Check the auto-populated details in the participation form for National Startup Awards
- Provide the details as mentioned in the application form and upload all the documents (refer above)
- The incubator/accelerator need to Fill in the followings details (as per the format given in the application form)
- Incubation/Acceleration Details
- Incubation/Acceleration Support
- Funding Details
- Mentoring Support
- Any other Support Provided to Incubatees
- Ensure that all the uploads required to comply with the size requirement as mentioned and click on ‘submit’
Finalists may be subject to a legal due diligence review by independent third-party evaluators. If the individual/ organization refuse such a request, Startup India holds the right to select the next highest scoring nominee as the award winner
