At the Startup Mahakumbh held in New Delhi this April, Union Minister Piyush Goyal called on India’s startup community to stop building "ice cream and grocery delivery apps" and instead focus on critical sectors like semiconductors, robotics, and deep tech.

Harsh? Perhaps. Necessary? Absolutely.

But Mr. Goyal’s statement isn’t just a critique of entrepreneurs, it's a reflection of a deeper, systemic failure. Despite being a country of 1.4 billion, India is still struggling to produce meaningful innovation in foundational technologies. The issue isn't lack of ambition among startups, it's a lack of exposure, infrastructure, and institutional support.

India’s education system, even after the introduction of NEP 2020,........

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