It seems like the start-up revolution from Kerala is on its way to take wings in a more visible manner.
Giving a major push to the Start-up Village project in Kochi, the Union government has evinced interest in taking the business incubator initiative to a national platform and using its expertise to replicate the model.
In a visit to the facility here on Sunday, Union Minister for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Kalraj Mishra promised all possible support to the initiative and agreed to apprise Prime Minister Narendra Modi of the need for more seed funding for the effective functioning of India’s first PPP model technology business.
Minister’s promise“I will speak to the Prime Minister and others and see what all we can do to support the incubator, which is doing an impressive job in bringing out innovative ideas and promoting young entrepreneurs,” the Minister said, congratulating the Startup Village team for establishing a robust ecosystem for budding entrepreneurs.
Mr. Mishra, a Member of Parliament from Uttar Pradesh, also noted the need for opening such a facility in his home State. During a 20-minute walk around the facility, along with the Start-up Village team, including chairman Sanjay Vijayakumar and CEO Pranav Kumar Suresh, the Minister examined various projects by young entrepreneurs.
P.H. Kurian, Principal Secretary, IT and Industries, who was present on the occasion, said the State would seek the support of the Centre for the expansion of Start-up Village.
The State government was planning to allocate Rs.75 crore in the upcoming budget for expansion of the facility, he added.
Mr. Suresh later briefed Mr. Mishra about the objectives of the establishment and shared his thoughts on how India could achieve leadership in terms of technology entrepreneurship if such incubators were set up in more States.
The CEO also elaborated on the plans to increase the space at the Kochi Start-up Village to five lakh sq.ft. and support more start-up initiatives.
