10,000 start-ups built in last 6 months, says Modi in speech praising IITs

India has more than 75 unicorns, he says in speech crediting premier colleges for role in innovation.

About 10,000 start-ups came up in the last six months to mark the country’s capabilities in technology and innovation, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday as he praised the Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT).

Modi was addressing the 54th convocation of IIT Kanpur when he said that India was the world’s second largest start-up hub and third largest for unicorns—an achievement he credited IIT students for.

“India accounts for more than 75 unicorns, while start-ups number almost 50,000. In fact, about 10,000 start-ups have come up in the last six months,” he said while listing steps taken by his