Over 1,000 startups and innovators are expected to apply for funding at the Funding Carnival to be organised here by TiE Coimbatore on March 31.
G. Karthikeyan, president of TiE Coimbatore, said the last date for submission of applications was March 10 and the pitchfest will be held at PSG STEP on March 31. Already 225 applications have come in from different parts of the State.
Former captain of Indian cricket team Sourav Ganguly and social entrepreneur Arunachalam Muruganantham released the poster for the event at a meeting held here on Friday. “Put in the efforts, be it in sports or business or life. Hard work never goes waste,” said Mr. Ganguly to entrepreneurs. “Any startup can go global. Look for small problems in the society and give solution,” said Mr. Muruganatham to start-ups.
The Funding Carnival is for startups across sectors and from all parts of the State, said Mr. Karthikeyan and Sivarajah Ramanathan, founder and president of Nativelead Foundation. The event is supported by PSG STEP, Nativelead, Chennai Angels and Kongu Technology Business Incubator. The investors will fund Rs. 3 lakh to Rs. 3 crore depending on the project and there is no ceiling on the number of units to be supported. Nativelead has funded eight startups in the State so far. Several startups in tier-two cities and smaller towns are moving to places such as Chennai or Bengaluru. The event is to support potential innovations and startups. The focus will be on those coming from rural areas.
For the preliminary round, applicants will be categorised into four regions - north, south, east, and west. After elimination, ideas short-listed will participate in the pitchfest to be held on March 31, they added.
Applicants have to fill the online application form or mail it to ed.tiecbe@gmail.com or contact 9629204432 or 6380337673 or log on to facebook.com/tiecoimbatore for more information.
