Startups came, took loans and vanished. Now borrowing isn’t easy

Nearly 1,500 startups have received subsidised government loans over the past three fiscal years, but entrepreneurs say weak policies, poor targeting and lack of long-term support have left little visible impact.

Nearly 1,500 startup entrepreneurs have received around Rs1.88 billion in subsidised loans from the government over the past three fiscal years, including the current one. However, entrepreneurs say the programme has yielded little visible impact, with a large majority of startups failing within a year of operation.