India’s climate tech ecosystem in dire need of both early, growth-stage funding: Report

By Jag Jivan

India’s climate tech ecosystem, which boasts over 800 startups, is in dire need of both early and growth-stage funding to leverage its full potential, according to a report by Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad (Ventures) and MUFG Bank, Japan. Despite a robust initial funding landscape, with approximately two-thirds of climate tech startups receiving seed capital, growth-stage investments remain critically lacking.

The report highlights that a mere 2.5% of these startups have successfully raised Series A+ funding, primarily within the electric mobility sector. While more than 80% of these startups focus on emission reduction solutions, offerings aimed at enhancing resilience to climate change are considerably limited. It emphasizes that the challenge of securing growth-stage capital is a significant barrier for these companies as they strive to scale their innovations and maximize their impact.

The report outlines sector concentration within the climate tech space: transport and mobility segments dominate, with over 350 startups capturing nearly 85% of total climate tech funding. In contrast, other critical areas like Industrial Decarbonization, Waste Management, and Alternative Fuels remain underfunded despite their substantial potential in combating climate change.

Future prospects

The analysis identifies promising areas for innovation and growth, including decarbonization technologies, waste-to-value initiatives, and alternative fuels like biofuels and hydrogen. Published on September 20, 2024, the report titled “Innovation for Impact: Indian Startups Driving Climate Action” was launched at the Climate Action Summit—Building in India, for the World. It offers a comprehensive look at India's rapidly evolving climate tech sector and the essential role that startups play in tackling climate issues.

A call for support

As the seventh most vulnerable nation to climate change, India stands at a crossroads of challenges and opportunities within its climate tech landscape. The report underlines the urgent need for not only enhanced financial backing but also supportive policies that can enable startups to thrive.

Chintan Antani of IIMA Ventures stated, “The $3.6 billion raised by startups over the past decade underscores the substantial potential of this sector and the crucial need for increased support to help scale innovative solutions. Since 2012, IIMA Ventures has championed climate action, assisting over 100 startups and bridging knowledge gaps to foster collective efforts.”

The report also highlights five transformative areas projected to reshape India's climate tech innovation: carbon capture technologies, waste-to-value solutions, growing alternative fuels, and the urgent necessity for innovative financial strategies to address a projected $1 trillion climate finance gap over the next decade.

Engagement at the summit

The Climate Action Summit drew a diverse group of stakeholders, including investors, entrepreneurs, corporate leaders, and sustainability experts. Prominent figures from sustainability sectors engaged in discussions about collaborative opportunities to advance climate tech solutions.

Takuya Senoo from MUFG emphasized the importance of climate finance for achieving India’s net-zero goals: “It is imperative that we help climate tech startups scale up. By investing strategically, we can foster sustainable growth and resilience for all.”

The Climate Action Summit has served as a pivotal platform for advancing growth and innovation within India’s climate tech ecosystem. Both IIMA Ventures and MUFG are committed to fostering this growth through the India Climate Tech Initiative, a program designed to support startups in navigating climate-related challenges.

Comments

Anonymous said…

nice

October 01, 2024

Stronger India–Russia partnership highlights a missed energy breakthrough

By N.S. Venkataraman* The recent visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to India was widely publicized across several countries and has attracted significant global attention. The warmth with which Mr. Putin was received by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was particularly noted, prompting policy planners worldwide to examine the implications of this cordial relationship for the global economy and political climate. India–Russia relations have stood on a strong foundation for decades and have consistently withstood geopolitical shifts. This is in marked contrast to India’s ties with the United States, which have experienced fluctuations under different U.S. administrations.

From natural farming to fair prices: Young entrepreneurs show a new path

By Bharat Dogra There have been frequent debates on agro-business companies not showing adequate concern for the livelihoods of small farmers. Farmers’ unions have often protested—generally with good reason—that while they do not receive fair returns despite high risks and hard work, corporate interests that merely process the crops produced by farmers earn disproportionately high profits. Hence, there is a growing demand for alternative models of agro-business development that demonstrate genuine commitment to protecting farmer livelihoods.

The Vande Mataram debate and the politics of manufactured controversy

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* The recent Vande Mataram debate in Parliament was never meant to foster genuine dialogue. Each political party spoke past the other, addressing its own constituency, ensuring that clips went viral rather than contributing to meaningful deliberation. The objective was clear: to construct a Hindutva narrative ahead of the Bengal elections. Predictably, the Lok Sabha will likely expunge the opposition’s “controversial” remarks while retaining blatant inaccuracies voiced by ministers and ruling-party members. The BJP has mastered the art of inserting distortions into parliamentary records to provide them with a veneer of historical legitimacy.

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

The cost of being Indian: How inequality and market logic redefine rights

By Vikas Gupta We, the people of India, are engaged in a daily tryst—read: struggle—for basic human rights. For the seemingly well-to-do, the wish list includes constant water supply, clean air, safe roads, punctual public transportation, and crime-free neighbourhoods. For those further down the ladder, the struggle is starker: food that fills the stomach, water that doesn’t sicken, medicines that don’t kill, houses that don’t flood, habitats at safe distances from polluted streams or garbage piles, and exploitation-free environments in the public institutions they are compelled to navigate.

Why India must urgently strengthen its policies for an ageing population

By Bharat Dogra A quiet but far-reaching demographic transformation is reshaping much of the world. As life expectancy rises and birth rates fall, societies are witnessing a rapid increase in the proportion of older people. This shift has profound implications for public policy, and the need to strengthen frameworks for healthy and secure ageing has never been more urgent. India is among the countries where these pressures will intensify most sharply in the coming decades.

Thota Sitaramaiah: An internal pillar of an underground organisation

By Harsh Thakor* Thota Sitaramaiah was regarded within his circles as an example of the many individuals whose work in various underground movements remained largely unknown to the wider public. While some leaders become visible through organisational roles or media attention, many others contribute quietly, without public recognition. Sitaramaiah was considered one such figure. He passed away on December 8, 2025, at the age of 65.

Epic war against caste system is constitutional responsibility of elected government

Edited by well-known Gujarat Dalit rights leader Martin Macwan, the book, “Bhed-Bharat: An Account of Injustice and Atrocities on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-18)” (available in English and Gujarati*) is a selection of news articles on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-2018) published by Dalit Shakti Prakashan, Ahmedabad. Preface to the book, in which Macwan seeks to answer key questions on why the book is needed today: *** The thought of compiling a book on atrocities on Dalits and thus present an overall Indian picture had occurred to me a long time ago. Absence of such a comprehensive picture is a major reason for a weak social and political consciousness among Dalits as well as non-Dalits. But gradually the idea took a different form. I found that lay readers don’t understand numbers and don’t like to read well-researched articles. The best way to reach out to them was storytelling. As I started writing in Gujarati and sharing the idea of the book with my friends, it occurred to me that while...

New RTI draft rules inspired by citizen-unfriendly, overtly bureaucratic approach

By Venkatesh Nayak* The Department of Personnel and Training , Government of India has invited comments on a new set of Draft Rules (available in English only) to implement The Right to Information Act, 2005 . The RTI Rules were last amended in 2012 after a long period of consultation with various stakeholders. The Government’s move to put the draft RTI Rules out for people’s comments and suggestions for change is a welcome continuation of the tradition of public consultation. Positive aspects of the Draft RTI Rules While 60-65% of the Draft RTI Rules repeat the content of the 2012 RTI Rules, some new aspects deserve appreciation as they clarify the manner of implementation of key provisions of the RTI Act. These are: Provisions for dealing with non-compliance of the orders and directives of the Central Information Commission (CIC) by public authorities- this was missing in the 2012 RTI Rules. Non-compliance is increasingly becoming a major problem- two of my non-compliance cases are...

Search This Blog