CM Rekha Gupta Announces Dedicated Startup Policy, Aims to Position Capital as India’s Startup Hub

Delhi intends to formalise a startup policy that ties education, skills and entrepreneurship on a single platform. The Campus to Market initiative aims to mentor and fund youth ventures from concept to market, expanding incubators and increasing employment opportunities across universities, colleges and ITIs.

Delhi plans to position itself as a startup capital, with Chief Minister Rekha Gupta announcing that a formal Delhi startup policy will arrive soon. The statement came at the 'Campus to Market – Delhi Startup Youth Festival 2026’, as the government highlighted structured steps to help young innovators build ventures and move towards self-reliance.

The event took place at Dr. Ambedkar International Centre on Janpath Marg, where Rekha Gupta was joined by Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Jayant Chaudhary and Delhi Education Minister Ashish Sood. The festival gathered students, teachers, investors and startup founders to review new ideas and discuss future technology trends.

Delhi startup ecosystem links education, skills and entrepreneurship

According to officials, the Delhi startup policy aims to bring education, skills and entrepreneurship on a single platform. The goal is to give every young innovator support from idea stage to startup launch. The framework is designed to offer a “Sashakt Manch” so youth can move from concepts to companies and become Atmanirbhar.

Rekha Gupta visited several stalls at the festival and examined student projects from different institutions. Gupta interacted with young participants, teachers, investors and founders, and discussed how their solutions might reach the market. Student teams also outlined their startup ideas, market strategies and expected social impact during these conversations.

Delhi startup data highlights scale of youth participation

Officials described a wider ecosystem now being built from school to higher and technical education. Earlier, Delhi had startups but they were scattered, without a clear policy or a structured link between students, industry, mentors and investors. Education and startup-related schemes often stayed at the level of announcements and lacked coordinated execution.

Ashish Sood said this situation has shifted, with Delhi government encouraging collaboration between public and private institutions. Skill development, entrepreneurship and innovation are being placed at the centre of academic planning. “Campus to Market” has been rolled out in a more systematic way, so that students receive mentorship, funding support and direct access to markets.

The Startup Youth Festival has, for the first time, connected 11 universities, 12 colleges and 19 ITIs on one platform. More than 75,000 students are currently engaged with entrepreneurship programmes, while over 470 startups are working in incubation centres. Student-led startups together have generated an estimated revenue of Rs 500–600 crore.

Authorities also stated that each incubated startup is creating around four to five employment opportunities on average. At school level, students receive financial help and other support to develop early ideas. This approach seeks to build a continuous Delhi startup pipeline, starting from classrooms and extending to fully operational businesses.

Delhi startup vision driven by youth-centric policies

Rekha Gupta argued that India’s youth are shifting roles from job seekers to job providers. Gupta urged students to create solutions that address national challenges, so that Delhi and India can lead innovation at a global scale. The message framed entrepreneurship as both an economic tool and a public problem-solving approach.

Jayant Chaudhary focused on demographic trends, calling India a young country with significant youth strength. Chaudhary said that this energy raises the nation’s capacity to work, but real benefits appear only when young people get chances to advance. Recognising talent and sharpening skills were highlighted as key parts of the Delhi startup agenda.

Officials stressed that the Startup Youth Festival 2026 acts as a testing ground for this agenda. By linking campuses to markets, the Delhi startup framework attempts to convert student projects into viable ventures. The collected data on participation, revenue and jobs indicates early movement towards the government’s stated goal of a startup-focused capital.