- October 10, 2025
- Blog & Newsletters
- Comments : 0
The DPI Revolution: How Central India’s Startups Are Building on India Stack for Global Scale
Introduction: The New Foundation for India’s Tech Future
For years, the narrative of India’s startup ecosystem was written in the bustling lanes of Bengaluru and Gurugram. But a quiet, tectonic shift is underway, powered by a revolutionary force: Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI). Much like UPI unchained payments from the grip of a few players, India’s broader DPI, often called the ‘India Stack,’ is democratizing the digital economy. This isn’t just a metro phenomenon; it’s the new foundation upon which startups in Central India—from the IT parks of Indore to the innovation hubs in Bhopal—are building the next generation of global companies. This article explores how this digital backbone is leveling the playing field and what it means for founders, investors, and the entire entrepreneurial landscape of Madhya Pradesh.
What’s Happening: India Stack Goes Mainstream
Digital Public Infrastructure refers to the open, interoperable digital platforms that governments and businesses can use to deliver services. India’s suite of DPIs, the India Stack, includes Aadhaar for identity, UPI for payments, DigiLocker for documents, and the game-changing Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC). The scale of adoption is staggering. UPI now processes over 10 billion transactions monthly, becoming the world’s leading real-time payment system. More recently, ONDC is rapidly rewriting the rules of e-commerce. As of early 2025, ONDC has onboarded over 700,000 sellers and service providers, processing over 150 million transactions. (The Economic Times). This isn’t just about adding more sellers; it’s about unbundling e-commerce from monolithic platforms, allowing any small retailer or D2C brand to compete on a level playing field.
Why It Matters: A Paradigm Shift for Founders and Investors
For entrepreneurs in Central India, DPI is a force multiplier. It drastically reduces the barriers to entry that once made it difficult to compete with heavily funded giants. Founders no longer need to build every piece of their technology stack from scratch. They can plug into these public rails for core functions, focusing their resources on innovation and customer experience.
- Reduced Costs: Startups can leverage UPI for seamless payments without exorbitant fees and use Aadhaar e-KYC for instant, low-cost customer verification.
- Unprecedented Market Access: ONDC allows a local artisan from Gwalior or a food processor from Jabalpur to be discoverable to customers on any ONDC-enabled buyer app, be it Paytm, PhonePe, or a bank’s app. This breaks the dependency on high-commission marketplaces.
- Innovation at the Edge: By standardizing the basics, DPI encourages innovation in niche areas. A Bhopal-based fintech startup can create unique credit products for MSMEs using the Account Aggregator framework, while an Indore-based logistics-tech firm can offer specialized delivery services across the ONDC network.
For investors, this signals a new wave of opportunities in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. The de-risking of core operational functions means capital can be deployed more efficiently towards growth and product development. The rise of Digital Public Infrastructure startups is creating a more resilient and distributed economic landscape.
How Startups Can Respond: An Action Plan for Central India
The opportunity is immense, but seizing it requires a strategic approach. Founders in Madhya Pradesh should actively explore how DPI can be integrated into their business models.
- Build for Open Networks: Instead of thinking in terms of closed platforms, design products and services that are ‘ONDC-native’. This could mean creating a seller app that helps a specific local industry (like handicrafts or agricultural products) get onto the network.
- Solve for Local Needs: Leverage DPI to address uniquely local challenges. A health-tech startup could use the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) stack to provide telemedicine services in rural areas, using Aadhaar for patient identification.
- Focus on Value-Added Services: With the basics like payments and logistics becoming commoditized, the real value lies in services built on top. This could be AI-powered inventory management for ONDC sellers or data analytics for D2C brands.
- Engage with the Ecosystem: Participate in initiatives like the ‘Build for Bharat’ hackathon, a collaboration between ONDC, Startup India, and other partners, to innovate on the network. (Inc42)
“अब दुकान सिर्फ़ बाज़ार में नहीं, पूरे भारत में है।” (Now the shop is not just in the market, but across all of India.) This sentiment captures the power of ONDC for local businesses.
The Local Lens: How Madhya Pradesh is Plugging In
Central India is not just a passive observer of this revolution; it’s an active participant. The Government of Madhya Pradesh demonstrated significant foresight by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with ONDC back in November 2022 to accelerate adoption among local MSMEs and entrepreneurs. (Wikipedia). This proactive stance creates a fertile ground for innovation.
We see this reflected in the ecosystem. Indore, with its 1000+ startups and robust IT infrastructure at the Crystal IT Park and the upcoming Sinhasa IT Park, is a prime hub for this new wave. (Times of India). Companies like Indore-based Shopkirana, a B2B e-commerce platform connecting thousands of retailers, are already solving the complex supply chain problems that DPI can help scale further. In Bhopal, incubators are nurturing startups that can leverage these open protocols from day one. Institutions like IIM Indore and IIT Indore are producing talent equipped to build for this new digital paradigm, moving beyond traditional platform-centric models.
India Stack: Opportunities for Central India’s Startups
| DPI Component | Function | Startup Opportunity in Central India |
|---|---|---|
| Aadhaar & e-KYC | Digital Identity Verification | A Bhopal-based fintech offering quick, paperless loans to farmers by verifying their identity instantly. |
| UPI | Real-time Payments | An Indore-based event tech startup creating a seamless ticketing and vendor payment experience for local events. |
| DigiLocker | Digital Document Wallet | An EdTech startup from Gwalior streamlining university admissions by allowing students to submit verified digital mark sheets. |
| ONDC | Open E-commerce Network | A Jabalpur-based D2C brand specializing in marble crafts reaching a national audience without paying high marketplace commissions. |
| Account Aggregator | Secure Financial Data Sharing | A wealth management startup in Indore providing consolidated financial advice to clients by securely accessing their data with consent. |
Takeaways: A TiE Mentoring Perspective
From a TiE mentoring standpoint, the rise of DPI is a call to action. Our role is to guide the next generation of founders to look beyond the immediate challenges of building a product and see the larger architectural shift. We must encourage them to think about building businesses that are inherently interoperable, scalable, and inclusive. At TiE Indore, we are committed to helping startups navigate this new terrain through programs like TiE Nurture, connecting them with mentors who have experience in building scalable tech solutions. The key is to stop thinking about how to win on a platform, and start thinking about how to win with the network.
Conclusion: Building for the World, from Central India
The Digital Public Infrastructure revolution is more than a technological upgrade; it’s a philosophical shift towards a more open and equitable digital future. India’s model is already gaining global attention, with countries across the world looking to replicate its success. For entrepreneurs in Indore, Bhopal, and across Central India, this is a once-in-a-generation opportunity. By building on the rails of India Stack, they are not just creating solutions for the local market; they are building on a framework designed for population-scale. The next global tech story doesn’t have to come from a traditional metro. With the power of DPI, it can be proudly built, scaled, and told from the heart of India.
About the Author
Amit Agrawal — Treasurer. Treasurer: Founder & COO of Cyber Infrastructure (P) Ltd. “CIS”; champion of AI-Enabled, tech-driven, global solutions and entrepreneurship; AI-First Mid-Sized Software Partner Scaling Enterprise Innovation; MIT & IIM Alum; Author: Scaling in the Age of AI; Featured in: Forbes, YourStory, TiE; Patented-Innovator; Mentor; Investor.
