New Delhi [India], January 16: Ten years. That’s how long India’s startup ecosystem has been quietly, and sometimes loudly, rewriting the rules. On National Startup Day India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi marked the milestone with praise, pride, and a pointed message to the country’s risk-takers.
National Startup Day India is not about hashtags or photo-ops. It is about momentum. This year’s celebration carried extra weight, marking a full decade since the launch of the Startup India initiative. A decade that changed how India thinks about risk, innovation, and ambition.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended his best wishes to everyone associated with startups, calling the day a celebration of courage, innovation, and entrepreneurial zeal. Especially among India’s youth. And frankly, that focus is well earned.
India’s rise in the global startup ecosystem has not been accidental. It has been built by founders who chose uncertainty over comfort, scale over safety, and long nights over quick wins. National Startup Day India exists to recognise that grind.
Startups as Engines of Change
In a clear and confident message, the Prime Minister described startups as engines of change shaping India’s economy and society. Not soft inspiration. Hard impact.
According to him, startups are addressing planetary challenges while generating opportunities for people at scale. That dual role matters. Innovation without relevance is noise. India’s startups, across sectors, are proving they can solve real problems and still build sustainable businesses.
He acknowledged entrepreneurs who dared to dream big, challenged conventional norms, took risks, and delivered transformative outcomes. It was not framed as luck or privilege. It was framed as intent. That distinction matters.
National Startup Day India is, at its core, a nod to that intent.
A Decade of Startup India and the Reform Effect
Ten years ago, Startup India was an idea backed by policy ambition. Today, it is an ecosystem backed by reform.
The Prime Minister highlighted the government’s sustained engagement with stakeholders to strengthen the startup landscape. The phrase he used stood out. Reform Express. Fast, continuous, and unapologetically disruptive.
Those reforms have opened doors that were previously unthinkable for startups. Space. Defence. Advanced manufacturing. Deep tech. Sectors once locked behind bureaucracy are now seeing young companies build, test, and deploy at speed.
This is not accidental liberalisation. It is deliberate ecosystem design.
National Startup Day India reflects that shift. From permission-based thinking to performance-based outcomes.
Startups and Aatmanirbhar Bharat
The Prime Minister made it clear that startups are central to building an Aatmanirbhar Bharat. Self-reliance here does not mean isolation. It means capability.
Indian startups are no longer just service providers. They are product creators, technology builders, and system integrators. They are solving Indian problems at Indian scale, and increasingly exporting those solutions globally.
By supporting youth willing to take risks and become problem solvers, the government has aligned national ambition with entrepreneurial energy. It is a pragmatic partnership. The state builds the runway. Founders decide how far they want to fly.
National Startup Day India reinforces that alignment.
The Ecosystem Behind the Founders
Every successful startup story has invisible chapters. Mentors who gave brutal advice. Incubators that provided early shelter. Investors who backed conviction over certainty. Academic institutions that fed talent into the system.
The Prime Minister acknowledged this broader ecosystem and its role in nurturing innovation. Guidance and insight, he noted, go a long way in encouraging young innovators.
This matters. Startups do not grow in isolation. They grow in clusters of trust, capital, knowledge, and timing. National Startup Day India is as much about these enablers as it is about founders.
Youth, Sanskrit, and the Long Game
In a symbolic touch, PM Modi quoted a Sanskrit Subhashitam praising the determination and dedication of India’s youth. It was not nostalgia. It was a reminder that discipline and effort are not new ideas in Indian thought.
He noted that young entrepreneurs are setting new records in the startup world through relentless effort. Energy and passion, he said, will be the greatest force in realising the vision of a Viksit Bharat.
That confidence is not blind optimism. It is grounded in what India’s startup ecosystem has already delivered in ten years.
A Message Shared Publicly
In a thread posted on X, the Prime Minister reiterated his message, calling National Startup Day India a celebration of courage, innovation, and youth-led growth. He marked the decade of Startup India with pride and reaffirmed support for startups venturing into frontier sectors like space and defence.
अपने दृढ़ संकल्प और समर्पण से हमारे युवा साथी स्टार्टअप की दुनिया में नित-नए रिकॉर्ड बना रहे हैं। इनका जोश और जुनून विकसित भारत के सपने को साकार करने में सबसे बड़ी शक्ति बनने वाला है।
दुर्लभान्यपि कार्याणि सिद्ध्यन्ति प्रोद्यमेन हि।
शिलाऽपि तनुतां याति प्रपातेनार्णसो मुहुः॥ pic.twitter.com/kXRkqp57wO
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 16, 2026
He also underlined the role of the ecosystem and repeated the government’s commitment to supporting young problem solvers.
The message was consistent. Clear. Repeated for emphasis.
For those building companies in India today, the signal could not be louder.
Why National Startup Day India Matters Now?
Honestly, anniversaries are easy to celebrate. Progress is harder to sustain.
National Startup Day India matters because it marks continuity. A decade of policy support, ecosystem building, and cultural shift toward entrepreneurship.
The next decade will demand more. Deeper tech. Global competitiveness. Sustainable growth. But if the last ten years proved anything, it is this. India’s startup engine is no longer warming up. It is already in motion.