Minister Nirmala Sitharaman wants to involve startups in defence production

Hyderabad, Nov 29: As we knew that, The 8th edition of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit is a three-day event, to be attended by 1,500 entrepreneurs from 170 countries. Women will represent 52.5 per cent of the entrepreneurs, investors and ecosystem supporters at the GES 2017.

In an attempt to give a big boost to startup ecosystem, defense minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said that her ministry is contemplating easing tender processes to allow the participation of startups in defense production.

Participating in a panel discussion with Ivanka Trump-moderated by Cisco chairman John Chambers, Ms. Sitharaman said she has convened a meeting of industry bodies to discuss this.



"We have finalized December 4 as the date when I will be discussing with chambers of commerce on how startups can participate in the defense ministry's procurement process," she said.

Under the existing rules, Ms Sitharaman said startup companies cannot take part in the tendering process unless they had been in such business for a certain number of years or have achieved a certain amount of turnover.

Therefore, she said, the government is keen on easing rules that could restrict the participation of startups in the defense ministry's tenders.