RAS question
Approximately how many startups were registered in India in 2025, the highest annual addition since 2016?
Correct answer: (C) 44,000.
In 2025, India registered nearly 44,000 new startups, the highest annual addition since Startup India began in 2016.
Explanation
PM Modi, speaking at the programme marking a decade of Startup India, said that nearly 44,000 new startups were registered in 2025. The PIB text describes this as the biggest single-year jump since the beginning of Startup India, which is why 44,000 is the best approximation among the options. The figure also fits the broader point that Startup India had moved from a limited early base to a much larger ecosystem, with startups becoming a visible source of innovation, growth and employment. Startups have generated over 21 lakh direct jobs, so the registration figure is not just a count of firms; it signals the scale at which the startup ecosystem has entered India's current economic policy discussion.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) 22,000 is only half of the nearly 44,000 registrations stated in the PIB-reported speech, so it understates the 2025 annual addition.
- (B) 33,000 is below the 2025 figure and does not match the PIB statement that nearly 44,000 new startups were registered.
- (D) 55,000 overstates the figure; the Press Information Bureau says nearly 44,000 new startups, not a number in the mid-fifty-thousand range.
Concept
This tests the Indian Economy theme of entrepreneurship, Startup India and employment-linked growth indicators. RAS repeatedly asks such scheme-linked current economy facts because they connect policy initiatives with measurable outcomes.