The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), part of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Blue Star Limited (Blue Star) to strengthen the manufacturing and startup ecosystem in India. The collaboration is intended to support startups, innovators and entrepreneurs working on heating, ventilation and air conditioning technologies, digital solutions and advanced manufacturing processes. It has been designed to foster industry engagement that helps product startups develop scalable and industry relevant solutions. The initiative aligns with government efforts to catalyse innovation and domestic manufacturing capacity.

Under the agreement, startups will gain access to mentorship from industry experts, research and development laboratories and testing facilities, and pilot opportunities that can facilitate market linkage. The partnership also envisages structured pathways for product validation and Proof of Concept (PoC) development with potential integration into industry value chains. Periodic engagement sessions and technical support are planned to align emerging solutions with manufacturing requirements.

DPIIT intends to work with Blue Star to organise innovation challenges under the Bharat Startup Grand Challenge and to conduct targeted hackathons focused on HVAC, digital technologies and manufacturing domains. Selected startups from structured PoC programmes may be considered for pilot deployment and further commercial engagement with industry partners. The collaboration will prioritise interventions that enable measurable scaling and demonstrable outcomes for participating ventures.

The Memorandum of Understanding was executed by the Deputy Secretary of DPIIT, T. L. K. Singh, and the Managing Director of Blue Star, B. Thiagarajan, in the presence of senior officials from both organisations. DPIIT officials indicated that such partnerships are intended to expose startups to real world problem statements and to accelerate the translation of prototypes into operational solutions. The partnership is expected to expand access to infrastructure and mentorship that can reduce barriers to commercialisation.