The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has launched the third edition of the National Startup Awards. In line with Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, the National Startup Awards 2022 will acknowledge startups and enablers who have been instrumental in revolutionising the development story of India and hold within them the power and potential to further fuel the spirit of Aatmanirbhar Bharat.

The first National Startup Awards were announced in 2020 and witnessed applications from over 1,600 startups and ecosystem enablers across India. The recently concluded National Startup Awards 2021 saw participation from over 2,200 startups and ecosystem enablers. After conducting two successful editions, the National Startup Awards 2022 are open for applications.

The awards for startups will be given in 17 sectors classified into 50 sub-sectors. The 17 sectors are Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Construction, Drinking Water, Education & Skill Development, Energy, Enterprise Technology, Environment, FinTech, Food Processing, Health and Wellness, Industry 4.0, Media & Entertainment, Security, Space, Transport, and Travel.

In addition, there are seven special categories of awards for startups:

• Women-led startups
• Impact in rural areas
• Campus startups
• 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/ Union Territories (Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jammu & Kashmir, and Ladakh)

The National Startup Awards 2022 will also reward exceptional incubators and accelerators as key building blocks of a robust startup ecosystem.

A cash prize of INR 5 lakh will be awarded to each winning startup. The winners and runners-up will also be given opportunities to present their solutions to relevant public authorities and corporates for potential pilot projects and work orders and pitching opportunities with investors. They will also be given priority for participation in various national and international startup events.

A cash prize of INR 15 lakh each will be awarded to one winning incubator and one winning accelerator.

The applications for the National Startup Awards 2022 are open till 15^th March 2022. For more details, visit www.startupindia.gov.in/content/sih/en/nsa2022.html.

National Startup Awards invite applications across sectors and special categories, offering recognition, pilot opportunities and event priority. National Startup Awards 2022 invites applications across 17 sectors and 50 sub sectors and defines seven special categories including women led, rural impact, campus, manufacturing excellence, pandemic innovation, Indic language solutions, and North East and Hilly States startups. The programme also recognises incubators and accelerators and offers cash prizes, opportunities for pilot projects and corporate/public presentations, investor pitching, and priority participation in national and international startup events. Applications are to be submitted via the published portal by the announced deadline.