National Association of Software & Services (NASSCOM) has launched a new initiative called '10,000 Start-ups', through which it aims to incubate, fund and support 10,000 technology start-ups in India over the next ten years. The organization has partnered with Indian Angel Network for this initiative and it is being sponsored by Google, Microsoft and Verisign. It appears that this program is trying to position itself in the ranks of similar programs run in other countries like Startup Chile. What does the program offer: The program will include early stage funding between 5 lakh to 2 crores, around 3-4 months of incubation, working space and access to potential investors, mentors among others. The organization mentioned that startups will also receive a start-up kit with technology tools worth $100,000, which includes Microsoft Azure credits, Amazon AWS credits, Google App Engine, Google Apps for Business, Google Adwords, and Makemytrip Discount coupons among others. While the release mentions that the applications for this program opens today, we got an alert on the 10000 Startups website which stated that the applications will open soon, at the time of writing this article. It also appears that there are separate application process for angel funding and the accelerator programs. For Angel funding, the initiative plans to offer funding from Rs 25 lakh to Rs 2 crore from various angels, while in the accelerator program, it plans to offer funding of Rs 5-10 lakh. Its also worth noting that the deadline for angel funding applications is April 30, 2013, while the applications for the acceleration program close by…
