India is home to one of the world's largest start-up ecosystems, PM Narendra Modi has said

The Covid-19 pandemic has put many conventional methods to test and innovation is the only way out when convention fails, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday.

Speaking during the 5th edition of the VivaTech summit, the Prime Minister invited the world to invest in India based on the five pillars of -- "talent, market, capital, eco-system, and culture of openness". The PM said India's strides in the world of tech and start-up are well-known.

"Our nation is home to one of the world's largest start-up ecosystems. Several unicorns have come up in recent years. India offers what innovators and investors need," said PM Modi in his virtual address.

The VivaTech event brings together the stakeholders in technology innovation and the startup ecosystem and includes exhibitions, awards, panel discussions, and startup contests. The 5th edition of VivaTech is being held in Paris, France between June 16 and 19.

Further, the Prime Minister said, "India offers what innovators and investors need. I invite the world to invest in India based on the five pillars of, Talent Market Capital Eco-system And, the culture of openness.”

PM Modi further stated that this platform reflects France's technological vision. India and France have been working closely on a wide range of subjects. Among these, technology and digital are emerging areas of cooperation. It is the need of the hour.

He emphasized that France and Europe are among India’s key partners, referring to his conversations with President Macron, in summit with EU leaders in Porto in May.

“History has shown that leadership in new technology drives economic strength, jobs and prosperity. But, our partnerships must also serve a larger purpose, in service of humanity. This pandemic is not only a test of our resilience, but also of our imagination It is a chance to build a more inclusive, caring and sustainable future for all," said the Prime Minister.

During the pandemic, said the Prime Minister, digital technology helped the country to cope, connect, comfort and console. India's universal and unique bio-metric digital identity system - Aadhar - helped to provide timely financial support to the poor.

“We could supply free food to 800 million people, and deliver cooking-fuel subsidies to many households. We in India were able to operationalise two public digital education programes- Swayam and Diksha - in quick time to help students,” the Prime Minister informed.

The Prime Minister also enumerated initiatives like state-of-the-art public digital infrastructure, five hundred and twenty three thousand kilometres of fibre optic network linking One hundred and fifty six thousand village councils, public wi-fi networks across the country. He also elaborated on efforts to nurture a culture of innovation.

Talking about the disruption in different sectors over the past year, the Prime Minister insisted that disruption does not have to mean despair. Instead, the focus should be kept on the twin foundations of repair and preparation.

“This time last year, the world was still seeking a vaccine. Today, we have quite a few. Similarly, we have to continue repairing health infrastructure and our economies. We in India implemented huge reforms across sectors, be it mining, space, banking, atomic energy and more. This goes on to show that India as a nation is adaptable and agile, even in the middle of the pandemic” said PM Modi.

The Prime Minister also stressed the need for insulating our planet against the next pandemic. He called upon the start-up community to take the lead in working with collective spirit and a human centric approach to overcome this challenge.

“The start-up space is dominated by youngsters. These are people free from the baggage of the past. They are best placed to power global transformation. Our start-ups must explore areas such as: Healthcare. Eco-friendly technology including waste recycling, Agriculture, new age tools of learning”, said the Prime Minister.
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