Seven Indian startups will each receive ₹30 lakh in funding. They will also get structured post-funding mentoring covering everything from legal compliance to fundraising strategy. This was announced on July 3, 2026, as the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) participated in a virtual interaction under the FICCI Mercedes-Benz Bharat Innovation and Business Ideas Challenge Programme. The initiative is a joint effort by FICCI, Mercedes-Benz India and Startup India (DPIIT) to find and support high-potential Indian startups.
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What Is the FICCI Mercedes-Benz Bharat Innovation Challenge?
The FICCI Mercedes-Benz Bharat Innovation and Business Ideas Challenge Programme is a national-level innovation initiative. It is anchored by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) in partnership with Mercedes-Benz India. It is supported by Startup India under DPIIT.
The programme has one clear goal. It looks for high-potential Indian startups building innovative and scalable solutions. It focuses on five key sectors:
- Manufacturing
- Sustainability
- Education
- Decarbonisation
- Automotive and Electric Vehicles (EVs)
The programme is designed to contribute to India's vision of becoming a global hub for innovation and to the Viksit Bharat 2047 goal.
How the Selection Worked
The programme invited applications from across India. The response was nationwide. After a rigorous multi-stage evaluation by industry experts and ecosystem stakeholders, 32 startups were shortlisted. They were invited to present their innovations before a jury and the leadership team.
The jury assessed each startup on four criteria:
Seven startups made the final cut. Each will receive ₹30 lakh in funding support. The names of the seven selected startups have not been officially released in the PIB announcement.
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What the 7 Startups Get: The Full Support Package
The selected startups will receive much more than just money. A structured post-funding mentoring and handholding framework has been put in place. It is designed to prepare these companies for growth, investment and global scale.
Specialised Mentoring Areas
The mentoring covers seven critical areas:
- Regulatory and legal compliance
- Taxation and fund utilisation
- Fundraising strategy and valuation fundamentals
- Term sheet negotiations
- Data privacy and cybersecurity
- Intellectual property (IP) protection
- Business and technology scaling
Demo Days
The programme will host dedicated Demo Days. Startups will showcase their innovations, business models and growth strategies in front of industry leaders, investors, mentors and ecosystem stakeholders. These sessions will help validate market readiness, sharpen positioning and create opportunities for partnerships and further funding.
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The Sounding Board Programme
The startups will also access the Sounding Board Programme. This is a strategic mentorship initiative. It connects founders with senior industry leaders who provide guidance, insights and leadership perspectives. The focus is on refining business models, sharpening growth strategies and accelerating the journey to market readiness.
What DPIIT Said
Additional Secretary of DPIIT, Shri Ateesh Kumar Singh, addressed the participants during the virtual interaction. He congratulated FICCI and Mercedes-Benz India for successfully implementing the programme.
He said the initiative reflects the growing strength of India's innovation ecosystem and the immense potential of the country's young entrepreneurs. He added that by providing timely mentorship and support, the programme empowers innovators to develop solutions aligned with national priorities. He said collaborative efforts between government, industry and startups are essential for driving innovation-led growth and strengthening India's position as a global innovation leader.
Who Can Apply: Programme Eligibility
To participate in this programme, startups must meet the following conditions:
- Must be registered with DPIIT
- Must be incubated at a Government of India-recognised incubation centre
- Must have a registered legal entity in India
- Must be at or above the functional prototype stage or have a pilot-ready solution
Applications for the current cohort are now closed. The next round has not yet been announced.
What People Are Saying
Reactions from the startup community and observers have been broadly positive.
One commenter noted: the model of combining funding with post-investment mentorship addresses a critical gap. Many startups fail not because of lack of ideas but because they do not understand regulations or how to scale. A holistic approach like this could really strengthen India's startup ecosystem.
Another welcomed the inclusion of the Sounding Board Programme: getting guidance from industry leaders can save years of trial and error. It's about far more than the money.
A third raised a concern about scale: ₹30 lakh is a good start, but for hardware or deep-tech startups, it is barely enough for prototyping and basic compliance. The mentorship is the real value. More such initiatives are needed for Tier-2 and Tier-3 city startups in Jaipur, Indore, Kochi and beyond the talent exists everywhere.
On the Mercedes-Benz involvement, one observer said: the focus on decarbonisation and EVs aligns perfectly with India's 2030 clean energy goals. This is the kind of corporate-government collaboration that actually moves the needle.
Why This Matters for India's Startup Ecosystem
India is currently the third-largest startup ecosystem in the world. The government has been making a conscious push to move beyond early-stage funding. The recognition that money alone is not enough is central to programmes like this one.
What DPIIT and its partners are trying to build here is a structured pipeline. An idea becomes a prototype. A prototype becomes a fundable company. A fundable company gets the legal, financial and market intelligence it needs to scale. And then it competes globally.
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The Sounding Board Programme and Demo Days are not afterthoughts. They are arguably the most valuable parts of the package giving founders access to networks and visibility that money alone cannot buy.
