China should increase investment in Indian startup ecosystem, says Amitabh Kant

What China has achieved in terms of advancement of technology and startups can easily be replicated by India, said Niti Aayog CEO, Amitabh Kant.

Kant said both the countries have a lot in common and Indian startup ecosystem has to learn a lot from China. (Image: PTI)

What China has achieved in terms of advancement of technology and startups can easily be replicated by India, said Niti Aayog CEO, Amitabh Kant. Speaking at the third edition of the Chindia TMT Dialogue 2018, Kant also urged the Chinese companies to increase their funding in India startups and stated that instead of focusing on exports, these companies should aim to raise their investment. "China remains the 17th largest investor in India's start-ups and should become the first largest (investor). So instead of exporting, we would like Chinese companies to invest in India," news agency PTI quoted Kant saying at the event. Kant, while address the delegates present at the event, also said that both the countries have a lot in common and Indian startup ecosystem has to learn a lot from China. He also stated that as much as 15 per cent of total foreign investment in Indian startups comes from China and India wants it to rise. Major investment China has taken place in 25 startups. "India has the world's second best start-up ecosystem and we are nearly 4,200 tech start-ups and the number should reach 12,000 by 2020. We need a lot of scale up funding. We have tried to develop an ecosystem that is conducive to growth of start-ups, and our start-up schemes have promoted innovation," Kant said. Currently, a large chunk of Chinese investment in India happens in sectors including finance, consumer internet, healthcare, Edtech and SaaS (software as a service). India exported around $13.3 billion in 2017, whereas it imported close to $76 billion. “We need to push for more investment. We have the potential to redefine the economy and emerge as a global leaders,” the Niti Aayog chief added. In 2017, India-China bilateral trade was pegged at $84.44 billion. Investment from Chinese companies stood at $2 billion in India as compared to $700 million in 2016, which was triple the amount in just one year. Further speaking about the online retailing ecosystem in India, Kant said in coming years e-commerce market will be huge in India. India’s young population will be a huge advantage coupled with business-friendly environment and the country will have 12000 technology startups in the next two years, he added.