Centre signs MoU with leading air conditioning company to boost manufacturing

To give a boost to India’s manufacturing and innovation ecosystem, the Union government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a leading air conditioning company to support startups, innovators, and entrepreneurs.

The MoU signed by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) with the leading companies aims to foster the growth of product startups working in areas such as HVAC technologies, digital solutions, advanced manufacturing processes, and supply chain innovation. It seeks to enable startups to develop scalable and industry-relevant solutions through structured industry engagement, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a statement.

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Under the initiative, the startups will be provided access to mentorship from industry experts, infrastructure support including R&D laboratories and testing facilities, pilot opportunities, and market linkages. The partnership will also facilitate startups in achieving key milestones such as product validation, Proof-of-Concept (PoC) development, and integration into industry value chains, it said.

The collaboration will also enable startups to access testing facilities, R&D infrastructure, and technical support, along with structured mentorship programmes and periodic engagement sessions to align innovations with industry requirements.

Joint Secretary, DPIIT, Sanjiv said the collaboration represents an important step towards fostering industry-driven innovation in the manufacturing sector, and noted that such partnerships enable startups to engage with real-world problem statements and scale solutions with tangible outcomes.

DPIIT will work with Blue Star Limited to explore the organisation of innovation challenges under the Bharat Startup Grand Challenge, along with targeted hackathons focused on HVAC, digital technologies, and manufacturing domains. Startups will have opportunities to participate in structured PoC programmes, with selected entities being considered for pilot deployment and further engagement.

Notably, last year, DPIIT had allowed QCO exemption on AC compressors of two tonnes and above till February 10, 2026 and the remaining models till April 17, 2026.