Youngsters in India now prefer entrepreneurship over MNC jobs, earlier, none took up challenge of starting ventures: RBI Governor

Highlighting the shift, Malhotra said, "When I left college, getting a job in a MNC was the preferred choice. None took up the challenge of starting a venture of his own. In recent years, however, a large number of engineering and management graduates are taking to entrepreneurship and start-ups."

The Governor stated this during his speech at the US-India Economic Forum, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF), in Washington DC.

He pointed out that this growing culture of entrepreneurship has helped India build a strong start-up ecosystem. Today, the country has around 150,000 recognised start-ups, supported by government initiatives such as Start-Up India, Digital India, and the Atal Innovation Mission.

Malhotra said that India now has the third-largest number of unicorns in the world, with several emerging from high-tech sectors like Artificial Intelligence, fintech, and renewable energy.

He also noted that India has improved its position significantly in the Global Innovation Index, climbing from the 81st rank in 2015 to the 39th position in 2024. Among lower-middle-income countries, India now ranks first.

Emphasising the importance of using India's vast human resources effectively, Malhotra said, " It is encouraging to note that India is fast becoming a nation of job creators rather than job seekers."

Speaking on government reforms, the RBI Governor said that digitalisation of various schemes, such as linking the public distribution system with Aadhar, has led to massive savings. The just-in-time flow of funds to state governments has also helped the Union government manage its cash flow better.

He said "Digitalisation of various government programmes like public distribution scheme with Aadhar as the backbone have also resulted in huge savings. Just in time flow of funds to State government has helped the Union government improve its cash flow management.

He also added that initiatives like the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) have significantly improved the efficiency of government spending, with savings of around 40 billion USD recorded until March 2023.