SUMMARY
With the Startup Mahakumbh, the MeitY Startup Hub is looking to not only engage with startups, but also the various incubators that are supporting startups at the early stage through masterclasses and fireside chats
The spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship is stronger than ever in India. Beginning with the Startup India programme in 2015, over the past decade, the central government’s push for startups has resulted in real change.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has undertaken various initiatives and measures to promote technology led startup-innovation ecosystem in India to create a conducive environment for promoting startups, making India as the third largest startup ecosystem in the world.
The Startup Mahakumbh supported by Invest India, MeitY Startup Hub (MSH) and Startup India to be held from March 18 to March 20, 2024 in Delhi, is the latest showcase for the progress of the Indian startup ecosystem, with MSH planning a series of sessions and workshops in line with the mission.
The MeitY Startup Hub (MSH) is the nodal body leading the MeitY’s vision of promoting schemes, policies, programs for startups & technology innovation and support for creation of intellectual property (IP).
With the Startup Mahakumbh, the MeitY Startup Hub is looking to not only engage with startups, but also the various incubators that are supporting startups at the early stage through masterclasses and fireside chats. High performing MeitY-supported Startups will showcase their cutting edge innovation for three days in the MSH Pavilion
- Incubator Masterclasses: The MeitY Startup Hub will organise an incubator masterclass for various Incubators supported by MeitY under different schemes like TIDE 2.0, SAMRIDH,.
- Startup Masterclasses: MeitY Startup Hub will also organise workshops for TIDE 2.0 and SAMRIDH scheme supported startups. These sessions will cover aspects such as building the right business models, pitching to investors, and fundraising and marketing strategies among others.
Over the years, MeitY has led diverse programmes and schemes such as SAMRIDH and TIDE 2.0 (Technology Incubation and Development of Entrepreneurs) that provide support to young startups nationwide. These incubators and accelerators have taken innovation to various corners of the country.
The MSH will bring its learnings from running these incubators to the Startup Mahakumbh with its incubator-centric masterclasses. MeitY Startup Hub’s incubator masterclasses at the Startup Mahakumbh will focus on how incubators can build partnerships and collaborations with industry players to enable startups and provide an opportunity for investors to
For startups, the MSH is organising fireside chats with noted founders that will capture the journey of unicorns and early-stage startups. These will provide aspiring entrepreneurs the right insights and direction for building and growing a company from the perspective of experienced founders.
“Aspiring founders don’t often get to interact with unicorn CEOs and founders in an interactive environment like the Startup Mahakumbh. At MeitY Startup Hub, we wanted to ensure that the event is not just about showcasing innovation, but giving meaningful insights to aspiring founders about building startups in the right way, ” said Jeet Vijay, CEO, MeitY Startup Hub.
Startup Mahakumbh: Showcasing India’s Startup Economy
The Startup Mahakumbh is expected to host over 1,000 startups and investors each and over 500 startup incubators and accelerators. Besides, at least 40,000 business visitors, 5,000 future entrepreneurs as well as at least 10 international delegations are expected to partake in the two day event.
Further, with unprecedented focus on emerging growth areas such as semiconductor design and manufacturing, electronics manufacturing, deeptech, climate tech, agritech and more, the Indian government has revitalised the Indian economy in the post-pandemic years.
To foster holistic growth in the startup ecosystem, the Startup Mahakumbh will see multiple dedicated pavilions celebrating innovation across sectors. Visitors can expect pavilions on key sectors such as AI and SaaS, Agritech, B2B and manufacturing, biotech and pharma, deeptech, climate tech, D2C and consumer facing platforms, gaming and esports, fintech, incubators and accelerators.
The Startup Mahakumbh is the latest and arguably the largest project under the Startup India programme, which was announced in 2015. Under this programme, the MeitY Startup Hub has been fuelling the rise of startups from even the most remote corners of India.
For instance, its recent ‘Investor Connect Programme’ showcases the innovative spirit nurtured through MeitY’s incubators, accelerators, and centres of excellence. The programme involves a series of ‘demo days’’ spanning multiple cities including Jaipur, Kanpur, Ahmedabad among other emerging startup hubs, to ensure that innovation outside the metros gets the spotlight.
