Neo San Launches SafeDispose Bengaluru to Tackle Sanitary and Biomedical Waste with WEF Support

BBMP Maternity Hospital, Halasuru 

• As part of an initiative by the World Economic Forum, Neo San will install their futuristic smart-bins, ‘Neo-X’, across Bengaluru over the next few months, in collaboration with the Greater Bengaluru Authority, Government of Karnataka.

Neo San, a Bengaluru-based clean-technology company that develops a range of highly efficient, on-site thermal waste-processors, has been awarded for their patented innovation by UpLink, the early-stage innovation engine of the World Economic Forum (WEF). In collaboration with the Government of Karnataka, the program aims to address the various challenges in our growing cities, and Neo San has been selected as a strategic partner to deploy its solutions across Bangalore to manage reject-waste on-site, at various facilities.

Launching soon under the name ‘SafeDispose Bengaluru', this solution will bring certified, on-site sanitary and biomedical waste-processing to government and private institutions across the city, taking away one of the most challenging aspects of waste management.

As a winner of the Yes/Bengaluru Urban Innovation Challenge, Neo San is a part of a structured collaboration between UpLink- World Economic Forum’s Centre for Urban Transformation, and strong partners like United Way Bangalore, Deloitte, Anthill Ventures, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Cisco, Salesforce, SAP, the Government of Karnataka, the Greater Bengaluru Authority, with more than 15 additional organisations. The programme supports innovative urban solutions across sustainability, sanitation, and public health. Bengaluru is only the second city in the world, after San Francisco, to host this global initiative.

Neo-X Unit by Neo San

A grant provided to Neo San will fund the deployment of Neo-X units that safely treat sanitary and biomedical waste at the point of waste generation. The units will be deployed phase-wise, at various institutions; colleges, schools, primary health centres, women’s hostels, government housing and other official buildings around Bengaluru, reaching over 5,000 women. This will also dignify waste collectors on-ground, who are often left sorting through such waste with their hands.

Manyata Tech Park

Across government schools, primary health care centres, and women’s hostels, waste like sanitary pads, bandages, soiled tissues and clinical consumables, is generated daily with no certified on-site disposal route. The most common outcome is open burning, which creates serious air quality challenges for surrounding communities. Open waste burning accounts for 11% of Bengaluru's total PM2.5 emissions*, making it the city's third-largest source of particulate pollution after transport and industry. Sanitation workers handle this waste manually, without protection or protocol. Girls in government schools have no safe, dignified disposal option during menstruation. Neo San is tackling this from a gender inclusion perspective as well as an environmental one, closing a gap that sits at the intersection of public health, worker dignity and clean air.

Every Neo-X unit has real-time IoT monitoring of each cycle run and every kilo processed, thereby creating robust data for urban planning for the city. The SafeDispose Bengaluru initiative is aimed at eliminating open burning and manual waste handling at all these sites, conducting source segregation workshops, and generating India’s first field-verified compliance data under the Solid Waste Management Rules 2026 — creating a replicable template for institutional rollout across Karnataka and beyond. Karnataka State Pollution Control Board has reviewed and validated the technology for deployment across the city.

Commenting on the initiative, Dhwaj Bagrecha, Founder, Neo San, said, “Waste infrastructure has a large gap nobody talks about. The third stream - sanitary, biomedical, contaminated reject-waste - is generated daily with no certified on-site disposal route. The most common outcome is open-burning at low temperatures or dumping, since it has no economic incentive for material recovery. This creates some serious air quality challenges around our cities, polluting water bodies and soil-health without check. More so, sanitation workers handle this waste manually, causing an invisible spread of health risks for them and others. SafeDispose Bengaluru is what closing that gap actually looks like in practice. Through this initiative, our aim is the on-site treatment of this waste, in a controlled manner, eliminating open burning and reducing overall process emissions by 98%. This is the first step of a much larger deployment in India, something we’ve been building quietly for years”

With more than 200+ machines deployed across India under managed service contracts — including at organisations such as SAP India, Taj Hotels, Airtel, Royal Enfield, RMZ,, Embassy Group and others. Neo San is now expanding its presence across government and institutional infrastructures.

About Neo San Private Limited

Neo San is a Bengaluru-based clean-technology company building India's most advanced on-site waste management infrastructure. The company is focused on addressing a structural gap in India’s formal waste management system at the institutional level. While dry recyclables have collection systems and organic waste has composting infrastructure, sanitary, biomedical, and contaminated waste often has no certified processing route. As a result, such waste is frequently openly burned or dumped — releasing pollutants such as PM2.5, dioxins, and furans, handed to contractors without verified downstream processing or dumped on land, destroying land value and leaching into the water table. The Solid Waste Management Rules 2026, which came into force on April 1 this year, now mandate separate certified processing for this waste stream at every bulk waste-generating institution, though a large number of institutions remain non-compliant.

Founded in 2022, the company develops, manufactures, and operates a range of sealed, sensor-driven thermal waste processors — from the most compact model, the Neo-X for use at Bulk Waste Generators, to the Neo-XT and Neo-AX that target biomedical and industrial applications at up to one tonne of waste per day. Neo San's combustion technology sustains 1,200°C through adaptive sensor-based control, achieving emissions 98% cleaner than CPCB norms. The technology is backed by 11 global patents (certified) and supported by the Karnataka Pollution Control Board as an ultra-low pollution initiative.

The company is seed-funded, and is in talks for a Series A round, and receives support from UpLink and the World Economic Forum with the right connections to deploy, hire and grow in Bengaluru.

Website: https://neosan.in/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/neosan/

Sources: *Guttikunda, S. et al. (2019). Air quality, emissions, and source contributions analysis for the Greater Bengaluru region of India. UrbanEmissions.Info / ScienceDirect. Available at: https://urbanemissions.info/wp-content/uploads/docs/2019-01-APR-AQ-Bengaluru.pdf

QuantE Energy Raises $500K from TDV Partners and Angels to Unlock $25B Residential Solar Market

• The company is using AI and IoT-powered solutions and innovative financial models to address multiple pain points in the residential industry like high costs, servicing and smart monitoring
• QuantE aims to expand its digital onboarding to all metro cities in the next 6-12 months for accelerated growth

QuantE Energy Tech Private Limited, a cleantech startup focused on distributed solar and renewable energy solutions in residential sector, has raised $500K in seed funding from Trillion Dollar Venture (TDV) Partners, an early-stage VC alongside participation from marquee angel investors including Raghunandan G - Founder Zolve and TaxiForSure, Amit Lakhotia- Founder Park+, Ankit Gupta - President Brookfields and ex-CEO OYO and Hari Krishnan Nair - co-founder Great Learning. It has also raised an undisclosed amount in debt and related instruments.

The investment will fuel the company's mission to democratize access to clean, affordable, and smart energy for the residential sector, especially housing societies in Indian metros and beyond.

The funding comes as India gears toward its ambitious renewable energy targets of 500 GW by 2030, with distributed solar playing a crucial role in the country's energy transition. Yet, most of India’s residential rooftop capacity remains untapped, with residential societies and individual homes — facing challenges of upfront costs, poor servicing, limited awareness and inconsistent project quality.

QuantE addresses this by deploying AI and IoT-powered solutions along with innovative financial models that make clean energy adoption seamless, affordable, and scalable. Founded in 2024 by seasoned entrepreneurs Akshat Khare and Ankush Vashisht, the company's platform combines advanced technology with innovative financing models to target India's untapped $25 billion distributed solar opportunity.

“This investment accelerates our mission to bring clean energy to markets that have been largely overlooked," said Akshat Khare, Co-founder QuantE Energy Tech. "The solar industry has grown rapidly in large urban projects, but there’s still a huge gap in serving the residential segment and societies. These customers face real barriers—high upfront costs and poor service and quality. We’re using technology to remove these barriers and make solar adoption easier—through AI/IoT-driven planning, smart monitoring, and flexible financing models that eliminate upfront costs, complex processes and make servicing absolutely seamless for residentials. Our goal is to make clean energy as accessible and reliable as any other essential service and bring transparency in the system."

QuantE’s solutions

For Residential societies and households

• AI powered analysis & energy profiling – Significantly reduces planning and downtime from weeks to hours
• Innovative financing models – Easier adoption
• IoT-enabled smart monitoring – Real-time performance tracking & predictive maintenance
• Community Solar/EV/ESS models – Shared energy for apartments and gated communities
• Digital onboarding & rapid deployment – Making complex processes smoother enabling faster execution

Commenting on the announcement, Ujwal Sutaria, Founder and General Partner at TDV Partners said, “The solar market is expected to reach $60 billion by 2028, from $25 billion in 2023, highlighting the massive opportunity in this sector. QuantE’s focus on democratizing clean energy access aligns perfectly with India's sustainability goals while addressing a genuine market need. The team's deep understanding of distributed energy markets and their tech-first approach positions them well to capture this significant opportunity."

QuantE has already deployed successful pilot projects for 13 societies across Mumbai, Pune & Delhi NCR with its cloud-based platform and AI-driven diagnostics showing promising early results.

The seed funding will support QuantE's ambitious growth plans over the next 6-12 months, including expanding digital onboarding and going deeper in the top metros itself, launching community solar pilots, and strengthening financing partnerships with banks, NBFCs, and CSR programs. The company will also focus on building its proprietary solar+AI hardware/software stack for enhanced monitoring and optimization.

The investment comes at a crucial time as India's B2B solar market grows at 15-17% CAGR and the B2B2C segment expands at 18-20% CAGR through 2028. With government policies like PM-KUSUM and increasing corporate ESG commitments driving adoption, QuantE is positioned to capture significant market share in the fragmented distributed solar segment.

While legacy players focusing primarily on large-scale projects, QuantE specifically targets India's residential societies —representing a massive untapped opportunity. The founding team brings deep expertise in energy technology, digital platforms, and financial innovation, enabling a truly tech-first approach to market challenges.

About QuantE

QuantE Energy Tech Private Limited is a Noida-based cleantech company delivering advanced solar and clean energy solutions to residential households and communities across India. Its offerings include turnkey Energy as a Service solutions for Solar/EV/ESS, Tech based O&M, flexible financing and IoT-powered energy analytics. Founded by Serial Cleantech Entrepreneurs Akshat Khare (with two successful exits) and Ankush Vashisht, QuantE’s mission is to democratize clean energy and accelerate India’s transition to 280 GW of solar capacity by 2030.

To learn more, visit: https://quanterenewables.com/

About TDV Partners

TDV Partners is a micro-VC firm backing early-stage startups led by visionary founders with a global outlook. Founded in 2021 by serial entrepreneur Ujwal Sutaria, TDV has built a portfolio of 36+ startups across emerging sectors, including consumer technology, spirituality tech, consumer AI, and lifestyle upgrades. With a founder-first approach, TDV provides hands-on support across go-to-market strategy, product-market fit, fundraising, and team building—from ideation to scale. The firm announced its second corpus of ₹50 crore in October 2024 to deepen its commitment to nurturing innovative tech-driven ventures from India. With one successful exit already under its belt, TDV is on a mission to back the next wave of trillion-dollar companies born out of India.

HYLENR Secures $3 Mn Pre-Series A to Commercialize LENR-Based Carbon-Free Heat Systems

HYLENR, a clean energy startup harnessing patented Low Energy Nuclear Reactions (LENR) to develop scalable, carbon-free heat energy systems for industrial heat and power, today announced the successful closure of around USD 3.0 Million strategic Pre-Series A funding round to accelerate product commercialisation.

The round was led by Valour Capital and Chhattisgarh Investments Limited, early-stage investors focused on deep-tech/energy transition technologies. Individual investors Karthik Sundar Iyer and Anant Sarda also participated. PwC served as the company’s advisor on the transaction, while Samvad Partners was their legal advisor.

The fresh capital injection enables HYLENR to fast-track from pilot to market launch, signaling growing investor confidence in LENR as a viable alternative to fossil fuels amid rising interest in its breakthrough heat energy amplification and scalable commercial systems.

Karan Goshar, Partner at Valour Capital, commented, “HYLENR’s LENR technology is disruptive; it represents a leap forward in redefining how the world approaches industrial heat and energy generation. What excites us most is the scalability and safety profile of their systems, coupled with the perfect mix of technological and entrepreneurial expertise within the team, which positions HYLENR to play a key role in the global energy transition. We are thrilled to back a team delivering transformative technology.”

“We believe LENR has the potential to be the safest and most energy-efficient thermal and electrical generation technology of the future,” said Siddhartha Durairajan, Chairman and Managing Director of HYLENR. Adding, “Our recent lab results show unprecedented energy gain ratios, and this round gives us the momentum to focus on our product roadmap. We have begun early proof-of-concept tests, with several government bodies and large corporations showing interest in our LENR systems. The next phase will focus on scaling manufacturing and expanding globally.”

“This round is a vote of confidence in both our technology and our mission,” expressed Ram Ramaseshan, Co-Founder, Executive Director and CEO of HYLENR. “We have moved beyond proof-of-concept into a phase where LENR can begin to address real-world energy challenges. This funding allows us to accelerate product development and market reach, addressing industry needs for clean, high-yield thermal and electrical energy solutions in the US, Europe, India and Japan markets.”

Pilot projects are already underway with leading government institutions and industrial players, aimed at replacing conventional fossil-based systems with sustainable, next-generation alternatives. The company’s product pipeline includes products ranging from 7.2KW for domestic consumption all the way to 1MW for large-scale industrial applications.

With its next fundraising round of USD 25 Million targeted with strategic investors and with Clean Energy focused funds from the U.S. and Europe, HYLENR aims to build on this momentum and expand its R&D, engineering, and international partnerships. The company is seeking mission-aligned investors who recognize LENR as a foundational pillar of the post-carbon energy era.

The inspiration for LENR technology comes from HYLENR’s Chief Innovation Officer, Padma Shri Dr. Prahlada, renowned as the Missile Man of India for his work on the Akash missile, and Dr. Varaprasad, the company’s Chief Scientific Officer.

About HYLENR Technologies

Founded in 2024 and based in Hyderabad, HYLENR Technologies is at the forefront of next-generation energy innovation. The company’s proprietary LENR-based hybrid heat systems aim to revolutionize thermal energy generation across industries such as manufacturing, oil & gas, district heating, and clean water desalination. Their breakthroughs in LENR are now protected by two patents — one for the product architecture, and another for the underlying process innovation. https://www.hylenr.com

About Valour Capital

Valour Capital is a venture capital firm backing breakthrough startups with the potential to create global impact. With a portfolio spanning cleantech, AI, biotech, and infrastructure, Valour is committed to investing in technologies that reimagine industries and reshape the future.

Mercom Launches 1st CleanTech Startup Pitch Competition at India Renewables Summit 2023

Mercom India, a clean energy research and communications firm, will be hosting its first startup pitch competition for cleantech companies, bringing together the most innovative startups in India’s clean energy industry. The competition will be held at the Mercom India Renewables Summit on April 27, 2023, at 10:30 am in New Delhi.

This competition will be open to Indian entrepreneurs or companies with a great cleantech idea or who have developed an early-stage technology that will further India’s energy transition.

The deadline to submit an entry is March 31, 2023.

Eligibility criteria for the competition include:

• The startup must own a product or innovation that contributes to clean energy.
• Company is not older than seven years.
• Company has never previously sponsored Mercom India Summit
• Company should have raised less than $10 million in capital
• Product/solution should be in the pre-commercialization phase
• Company should be based in India

Additional details can be found at: https://mercomindia.com/event/renewables-summit-2023/start-up-pitch/

Ten companies will be selected from the entries and shortlisted to present their ideas during the conference.

Priya Sanjay, Managing Director at Mercom India, commented, “this competition is the first of its kind in the Indian cleantech sector, and we expect to see a range of companies with disruptive technologies that will further the nation’s energy transition and net zero ambitions. The Renewables Summit is the ideal venue to not only evaluate new technologies but is also a great way to get new innovative companies and technologies the exposure they need in front of the industry’s investors and decision-makers.”

Submissions will be accepted until March 31, 2023. To submit your entry, visit: https://mercomindia.com/event/renewables-summit-2023/startup-registration-2023/

About Mercom India

Mercom India, a subsidiary of the U.S.-based Mercom Capital Group, is a clean energy research and communications firm recognized worldwide for its expertise in Indian cleantech markets. With offices in Bengaluru and Delhi, Mercom India Clean Energy Insights has been publishing industry news and providing research services for clean energy organizations across India since 2009. Mercom India Events is a thought leadership platform for clean energy professionals looking to forge a cleaner future. For more information, visit: https://mercomindia.com

Innovative Battery Tech Startup Clean Electric Raises $2.2 Mn Led by Kalaari Capital

Team of Clean Electric

Clean Electric, an innovative energy storage solutions start-up, has raised $2.2M in a seed round led by Kalaari Capital, an early-stage venture capital firm based in Bengaluru.

The round also saw participation from Climate Angels, LV Fund, 7Square Ventures, and CIIE Regional Innovation Foundation. Clean Electric’s proprietary battery technology seeks to address pressing safety & performance issues for EVs like battery fires, long charging times and frequent battery replacement.

With the funding received, Clean Electric plans to set up a manufacturing facility in Pune to produce 5,000 battery packs per month.

Founded in 2020, Clean Electric manufactures, designs, develops, markets, supplies and provides after-sales of advance energy storage solutions for mobility & stationary storage applications as well as related energy infrastructure & services. The company has built liquid-cooled battery solutions for 2 Wheelers, 3 Wheelers, and Battery Swapping applications.

The company’s products have been in pilot testing with multiple vehicle OEMs across the country, having undergone more than 30,000 Kms of on-road testing. Compliant with AIS-156 Phase 2 guidelines (to be implemented from March 2023), the products are expected to be ready for certification tests before year-end.

Clean Electric also plans to use the funds towards expanding its R&D, sales, & operations teams, as well as for developing new products around Faster Charging, Renewable Energy Storage, and Battery Swapping.

Overall, EV penetration is less than 2%. In order to transition to an all-electric future, India needs robust electric vehicles and charging infrastructure. Current EVs take 3-4 hours to charge making it inconvenient for users, while unpredictable battery life makes it difficult for the NBFCs & Banks to finance these vehicles. On top of this, multiple reputed EV OEMs vehicles’ catching fire & resulting casualties have eroded the confidence of customers and created safety concerns in their mind.

Clean Electric’s proprietary battery technology seeks to address pressing safety & performance issues for EVs like battery fires, long charging times and frequent battery replacement. With the funding received, Clean Electric plans to set up a manufacturing facility in Pune to produce 5,000 battery packs per month.

Overall, EV penetration is less than 2%. In order to transition to an all-electric future, India needs robust electric vehicles and charging infrastructure. Current EVs take 3-4 hours to charge making it inconvenient for users, while unpredictable battery life makes it difficult for the NBFCs & Banks to finance these vehicles. On top of this, multiple reputed EV OEMs vehicles’ catching fire & resulting casualties have eroded the confidence of customers and created safety concerns in their mind.

“Our aim is to enable Mankind’s shift from Fossil Fuels, and batteries have been the hardest part of this transformation. By providing dependable, safe, and performant Energy Storage Solutions, we believe we can add immense value to the EV and RE ecosystems” said Abhinav Roy, Co-Founder, and CTO at Clean Electric.

“Clean Electric is delivering on the much-needed innovation in battery technology suitable for India. The patents the team has filed introduce direct liquid cooling technology wherein the cells of the battery are 100% in contact with a coolant which ensures maximum safety (fireproof), 25-minute charging and a 1.5x longer life span. Their solutions can also be exported to several countries in the global south that are dealing with similar issues around EV safety and performance.” said Sumeet Singh, Partner at Climate Angels.

“India’s EV solutions will become global postulates. Next decade is going to witness the surge of EVs, expected to grow from the current ~1.4M to ~50M by 2030. India’s expectations of efficiency, performance, and safety of batteries under diverse and extreme constraints ranging from terrain to climate will seed global innovation. Clean Electric’s direct liquid cooled battery packs will become the benchmark, offering the highest safety while maximizing its life and efficiency. IITians Akash and Abhinav have invented zero kelvin packs which have the potential to meet growing needs of today and future.” said Ravinder Singh, Partner at Kalaari Capital.

Clean Electric is engaged inter alia, in the business of manufacturing, designing, development, marketing, supply and after-sales of advance energy storage solutions for mobility & stationary storage application and related energy infrastructure & services to accelerate mass electric vehicle usage.

Kalaari Capital is an early-stage, technology-focused venture capital firm based out of Bengaluru, India. Since 2006, Kalaari has empowered visionary entrepreneurs building unique solutions that reshape the way Indians live, work, consume and transact. The firm’s ethos is to partner early with founders and work with them to navigate the inevitable challenges of fostering ideas into successful businesses. At its core, Kalaari believes in building long-term relationships based on trust, transparency, authenticity, and respect.

Climate Angels is SEBI Cat-1 Angel AIF that invests only in early-stage pollution reduction & climate tech startups. Leading tech entrepreneurs & investors are now making climate investments through us. Some of our marquee LPs includes Vijay Shekhar Sharma (Paytm), Nipun Sahni (Apollo Global), Praveen Gandhi (Seedfund), Paula Mariwala (Aureolis Ventures) Phanindra Sama (Redbus Founder), Shailesh Vickram Singh (Massive), among 100+ others.

IIM-B Graduates' Green Energy Firm GPS Renewables Raises Series B Funding From Neev Fund II of SBICap Ventures

Team GPS Renewables

GPS Renewables, a Bengaluru based bioenergy technology firm, has closed its Series B funding from Neev Fund II, managed by SBICap Ventures, an alternative asset manager and a wholly owned subsidiary of SBI Capital Markets Limited, which in turn is a wholly owned subsidiary of SBI, the largest public sector bank in India. 

The latest round of funding will be used by GPS Renewables towards R&D and to support GPS Renewables’ next phase of growth and expansion.

With the current round, GPS has cumulatively raised close to $20 Million in the form of equity. The earlier round was led by Netherlands based Hivos-Triodos Fund and Hyderabad-based Caspian Impact Investments in September 2020.

GPS Renewables started off with a captive biogas product called the ‘BioUrja’. Today, the company has 100+ BioUrja installations across South Asia, with Fortune 500 companies such as Microsoft, Intel, Bosch, Cummins, Saint Gobain, Reliance, and several other leading hospitality chains such as Oberoi, Taj, ITC, Marriott, Hyatt and Accor Groups as clients. The Company has successfully expanded its capacity by over 5000x over the last couple of years, thereby positioning itself as the go-to project integrator in the bioenergy space, covering BioCNG, Bioethanol and Green Hydrogen.

Very recently, GPS Renewables commissioned Asia’s largest BioCNG plant based on SSO (Source Separated Organics) in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, which was inaugurated by Honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Setup over 15 acres of land, this biogas plant is expected to produce 17 tonnes of BioCNG everyday from 550 tonnes of organic household waste. Nearly 400 city buses in Indore will soon run on the BioCNG generated from this biogas plant. The company is in the process of setting up the world's largest BioCNG plant in Hyderabad in association with project development partners from Japan.

GPS Renewables commissioned Asia’s largest BioCNG plant in Indore

Asia’s largest BioCNG plant in Indore

Commenting on the investment, Mainak Chakraborty, Co-founder and CEO of GPS Renewables, said, “Untreated organic waste streams, ranging from urban waste to paddy straw, are one of the biggest contributors to global warming and it poses serious health concerns for the current and future generations alike. Climate positive solutions to these problems are the need of the hour, and that’s where GPS’ bioenergy solutions suite comes in. We are excited to partner with Neev II as we further strengthen our mission towards making the world cleaner and more sustainable. This partnership will help accelerate our growth while capitalising on the organic feedstock to bioenergy market.”

Manav Bansal, CIO, Neev Funds, said, “This investment into GPS resonates with our mission to decarbonise and to support the next generation of climate entrepreneurs. We will continue to open the gates of capital to climate-focused purpose driven businesses”

Akshay Panth, Principal, Neev Funds, said, “We look forward to our partnership with GPS. It has been a great story of entrepreneurship, and we are impressed with the strong product the team has built from scratch. Neev is proud to partner with GPS in their journey to help the world transition to a more sustainable way of living.”

About GPS Renewables

GPS Renewables is a Bangalore based cleantech firm founded in 2012 by IIM-B graduates Mainak Chakraborty and Sreekrishna Sankar. The company currently focuses on biomethanation technologies to solve the organic waste management challenge, accelerate substitution of fossil fuel with bioenergy and play a key role in mitigating climate change.

For more information: http://www.gpsrenewables.com/

About Neev Fund II

SVL-SME Fund (Neev II Fund), the successor fund of Neev I, was launched in May 2021 and seeks to provide growth and capital expansion to SMEs offering solutions for clean energy, electric vehicles, efficient use of raw materials, and water and circular economy projects in the country. Neev Fund II aims to provide growth capital to emerging and innovative SMEs that focus on mitigating climate risks, promoting social development, job creation, and gender equality.

Prashant Dwivedi Eyes Rs. 100 Cr. Business for his Cleantech Startup 'Navbharat Water' by 2023, Looks to Invest in Logistics

Prashant Dwivedi led Mumbai based cleantech startup, Navbharat Water Pvt. Ltd. has announced its objective to cross INR 100 crore business by 2023.

Backed by skilled staff and strong technical support, Navbharat Water offers Avant-grade customised wastewater management and treatment solutions. With state-of-the-art facilities, the firm provides comprehensive services to its clients. From treatment processes to recycling and reuse, it offers complete industrial, commercial, and domestic wastewater management solutions.

Prashant Dwivedi, MD of Navbharat Water Pvt. Ltd.

Established in January 2020, the firm is successfully offering its solutions to a varied clientele that includes industrial segments, hospitality, healthcare, retail segments, commercial buildings, IT parks, malls, warehouses, and large-scale infrastructure amongst others.

While most of the companies across the spectrum are witnessing a slump in their revenue, Navbharat Water has successfully scaled-up its business significantly.

Prashant Dwivedi, Managing Director of Navbharat Water, said, “We started in January 2020 and despite the lockdown, we managed to get some marquee customers that includes four major players in hospitality and realty sectors and some other customers in food tech. We are gaining projects at a fast pace and the numbers will swell dramatically.”

An IIM Calcutta alumni, Lawyer, and Environmentalist, Prashant Dwivedi founded Navbharat Water intending to protect the most valuable resource on the earth - water. “It is possibly the most important resource for humanity and we need to conserve it.”

“We set up Navbharat Water that’s into the business of water treatment with a view to doing our bit for the environment. We have the technology to set up STPs and ETPs that cover the entire gamut from basic water treatment to ZLD (Zero Liquid Discharge),” he adds.

Now, the company is planning to cross INR 100 crore business mark by FY23-24. “I expect this business to hit 100 Cr. topline by 2023,” says Prashant Dwivedi.

Moreover, on the question of raising capital and building valuation like most of his peers are aggressively doing, he says, “I don’t see the need for it. Business, if done correctly, should be inherently profitable. I run debt-free businesses. I believe it’s better to have a 30cr/100 Cr. bottom-line/top-line than a loss-making 5000 Cr. business. Profitability is the key to any business that we do.”

Investment announcement

An active investor, Prashant Dwivedi, says, “We invest in businesses that have positive unit economics and help them scale up. One of the various companies that I have invested in is a spectacle lens manufacturing company and I have made it profitable in 3 years. We are growing 100% yoy and will continue to do so for quite some time. We started with one lab in 2017 and now have 4 labs in India. I basically identify and focus on making one investment every year and scale it up.”

While announcing his investment plans he said that he invests in the business that “Should be profitable, scalable, and sustainable. The founder plays the most important role, so he/she must be extremely passionate and motivated to scale the business. The founder’s energy coupled with our experience makes it fairly easy to scale up in a sustainable fashion.”

“I am sector agnostic and invest in whatever makes financial sense to me. I personally feel there’s a huge fortune to be made in brick and mortar businesses. There’s more stability and lesser heartburn. You can focus on building the business than be worried about the next round of funding. To be clear, I don’t imply that any model is good or bad, personally, I prefer keeping it simple,” he adds.

“Logistics is close to our heart and is currently primed for technological disruptions. There’s a desperate need to move beyond legacy systems. We are in touch with some startups that are targeting the correct problems that need to be solved. We will add at least one of these companies to our investment portfolio shortly.”

About Prashant Dwivedi

He is a Computer Engineer, 2004 batch, MBA IIM Calcutta 2008 batch, and LLB 2017 batch. He joined Deloitte Consulting after his MBA, worked for a year, and then came back home to take over a loss-making Exports business that belonged to his family and was on the verge of shutdown. After turning his family business profitable, he successfully established multiple startups across various sectors. Today, he is a successful serial entrepreneur and investor who is aggressively looking for making investments into some of the cutting-edge startups in India.

B'luru based Three Wheels United selected for Third Derivative’s Inaugural Cohort of Climate Innovation Startups

Three Wheels United is one among the 50 climate innovation startups, selected from more than 600 applicants across 60+ countries 

Image - .Facebook.com/Threewheelsunited

Bangalore, December 2, 2020: Three Wheels United, a Bengaluru based tech-enabled financier of light electric vehicles, has been selected for Third Derivative's inaugural cohort comprising 50 climate innovation startups. Third Derivative (D3), a joint venture of Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) and New Energy Nexus, is a global, vertically integrated engine for climate innovation. They find, fund, hone, and scale the most-promising technologies to achieve larger, faster reductions in global carbon emissions. 

The inaugural cohort known as 'Cohort 417' named for this year's peak atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration of 417.1 ppm recorded in May, comprises startups spanning across sectors such as electricity, transportation, buildings, industry, energy access, food and agriculture, and financial and business model innovation. Three Wheels is one among the only three startups shortlisted from India.

Three Wheels United(TWU) was founded with an aim to reduce air pollution and generate more income for auto rickshaw drivers by helping them switch to electric auto rickshaws. Founded by Cedrick Tandong, Kevin Wervenbos, and Apurv Mehra in 2017, Three Wheels United provides loans for drivers to make a switch from conventional rickshaws to electric rickshaws. Out of the 12 Million auto- rickshaw drivers in India, 50% of the drivers rent their vehicle. The financing that is currently available for auto rickshaws drivers has extremely high down payment and interest rates, making these loans not feasible for many drivers. Though electric 3-wheelers are more attractive for a driver due to a lower total cost of ownership and higher profitability (TWU, ENEA, 2019), due to the lack of financing options that work for them, auto drivers are unable to make the shift to electric vehicles. Three Wheels United was founded with an aim to improve income for drivers by helping them shift from conventional auto rickshaws to EVs and positively impact the environment.

Commenting on the selection, Cedrick Tandong, CEO and Co-Founder, Three Wheels United said "We are excited to be a part of one of the largest climate innovation cohorts. At Three Wheels United, our overarching goal is to reduce the climate impact of the transportation sector by helping auto rickshaw drivers seamlessly switch to cleaner mobility. This collaboration with Third Derivative will surely help us accelerate our efforts towards promoting sustainable last mile connectivity"


Till date, Three Wheels United has worked with over 30,000 drivers offering them various products and services, financed 3000+ auto rickshaws resulting in reduction of 22,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions, and the generation of an extra $20M in income for the drivers.

For more details visit:
Third Derivative - Accelerating the rate of climate innovation together.


About Three Wheels United (TWU)

Three Wheels United is a Bangalore based fintech startup that offers holistic financing solutions for auto drivers to own a light electric vehicle, such as an electric auto rickshaw. It was started with an aim to reduce pollution while generating more income for light vehicle operators by helping them switch to electric vehicles.

To Support Innovative Cleantech startups World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) India and TiE Delhi-NCR Join Hands

WWF-India, a leading conservation organization joined hands with TiE Delhi-NCR to host the Climate Solver Demo Day in New Delhi on March 6, 2020. The initiative aimed at facilitating an enabling platform for cleantech ventures to showcase their innovative technologies and access funding opportunities.

Launched in 2012, WWF India’s Climate Solver initiative seeks to tackle the climate crisis on the back of a two-pronged strategy. On the one hand, it aims to bolster the development, promote widespread use, and stimulate market uptake of sustainable clean energy solutions developed by startups and SMEs. At the same time, it is dedicatedly creating awareness about low carbon technologies as an immediate and most practical solution to mitigate the climate crisis.

In June 2019, WWF-India in association with DLabs at Indian School of Business announced the launch of the second cohort of its Climate Solver Accelerator Programme with 14 startups working on clean energy technologies with the objective to scale up these innovative solutions and maximize impact creation. A two-pronged program, Business Accelerator (BA) and Capacity Development Program (CDP), was designed to support the ventures to address technology, policy, market penetration and capacity needs with a diverse set of ISB faculty, industry mentors, and experts engaged with the entrepreneurs.

The startups who pitched this year included Ricron Panels, Battery Pool, A2P, Rays Enserv, Zodhya Tech, Strawcture, Navgathi, Aegeous Technologies, Sagar Defence and Enelyf Ventures. Presented to an eminent audience comprising angel investors, VCs, impact investors and domain leaders representing TIFAC, TDB, DST, AGNii, UNIDO and CII, the pitch presentations also delved on how these startups are creating significant business impact for their consumers whilst solving pressing environmental challenges.

The evening also featured a special address by Mr Pramod Bhasin, Co-founder-Asha Impact, Chairman-Clix Capital, and Board Member TiE Delhi-NCR, who spoke about the impactful and inspiring ventures being undertaken by innovative cleantech startups, and Ms Ruchira Shukla, South Asia Regional Lead, Venture Capital, International Finance Corporation, World Bank Group, who provided insights into the cleantech funding landscape in the country.

Speaking of the tremendous potential of the innovations, Mr Ravi Singh, Secretary General and CEO, WWF-India said, “Technological and business model innovations offer the impetus to unlocking solutions for effectively tackling the climate crisis. The Climate Solver Demo Day aims to showcase and empower the startups and SME innovators who are committed to driving positive impact on the environment through their solutions.”

Commenting at the event, Ms Geetika Dayal – Executive Director, TiE Delhi-NCR, said. “It is our pleasure to be associated with WWF-India. The organization has been undertaking extraordinary initiatives in addressing climate and conservation-related issues across the country. With Climate Solver Demo Day, we aim to provide a platform to innovative startups that are dedicated to solving some of the pressing climate-related problems. It’s amazing how these startups are leveraging an innovative blend of technology and vision. We hope to work with WWF- India on many more initiatives in future which will have a positive impact on the society.”

The partnership with WWF-India furthers TiE Delhi-NCR’s mission of enabling innovators in India by providing them with a platform where they can access funding, networking, and mentorship opportunities. For the past 18 years, the platform has leveraged its strong mentor support base to consistently host empowering events and workshops for the betterment of the Indian startup ecosystem and continues to raise the bar even higher.

WWF's Climate Solver platform first began in Sweden in 2008 and launched in India in 2012 which further expanded to include countries like China and South Africa. WWF-India has been partnering with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Centre for Innovation Incubation and Entrepreneurship (IIM Ahmedabad), Indian Angel Network and National Innovation Foundation for the Climate Solver initiative.

• Climate Solver: www.climatesolver.org


• Climate Solver India page: http://bit.ly/WWFINDIAClimateInnovations

About WWF-India: WWF-India is one of India’s leading conservation organizations with programs and projects spread across the country. The organization works towards the conservation of biodiversity, natural habitats and the reduction of humanity’s ecological footprint. The mission of WWF-India is to stop the degradation of the earth's natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature.

About TiE Delhi-NCR: TiE is a global not-for-profit organization dedicated to fostering entrepreneurship through mentoring, networking, education, incubation and funding. It is spread across a vast network of 61 Chapters in 14 countries. TiE Delhi-NCR is among the most active and vibrant chapters across the vast TiE network. In the last 18 years, it has continuously taken the lead in creating an increasingly positive ecosystem for entrepreneurs and investors. With a strong mentor support base, marquee events and focused workshops throughout the year it has emerged as one of the most valuable platforms supporting entrepreneurship, nationally. TiE has a wide range of programs including TiE Global Summit, TiEcon, Startup Expo, Special Interest Groups (SIGs) across sectors, TiE Institute & TiE Young Entrepreneurs

India's Largest Clean Energy Startup ReNew Power Raises $375 Mn Via Green Bond Issue

India’s largest independent power generation company in the renewable energy sector, ReNew Power Limited, has raised yet another round of funding from international investors as it continues to aggressively push to expand its project pipeline.

ReNew Power Thursday has concluded a green bond issue of US$375 million ( ~ ₹ 2580 Crores ), which would be used for capital expenditure on green projects and refinancing external commercial borrowings.

Green Bonds are debt instruments that allow investors to invest in sustainable projects while offering issuers affordable funding to finance these projects.

Like all bonds, green bobds are loans from investors to issuers, with interest paid to bond owners for a given period before the principal is repaid.

The capital raised through the green bond issue will be utilised for refinancing outstanding external commercial borrowings and as capex in eligible green projects.

Barclays (B&D), Goldman Sachs, HSBC, JP Morgan and YES Bank were the book runners for the green bond issue.

The dollar-denominated bonds received excellent response and were fully subscribed by leading fund managers, asset managers, banks and pension and life funds from across the US, Europe and Asia, the company said.

The issue was opened for subscription on March 5 and closed on the same day.

"Our history of financial prudence, investing in high-quality assets and creating value for all our stakeholders has enabled us to regularly raise funds to fuel our rapid growth. We are happy that our bond offering received such an enthusiastic response, especially when the renewables sector is facing challenges in raising capital," ReNew Power Chairman and Managing Director Sumant Sinha said in the statement.

"The renewables market in India is firmly established and is growing rapidly. ReNew Power is India's largest IPP with more than 7,000 MW of commissioned and under-construction wind and solar projects," he said.

ReNew Power Deputy Chief Financial Officer Kailash Vaswani said: "The bond issue was in line with our strategy of diversifying debt sources. The issuance enabled us to fix our interest rate risk and achieve a lower pricing than existing borrowing costs. The international bond investors have seen us deliver on committed performance and, hence, have come forward to invest in our new issuance.

Founded in 2011, by Suman Sinha, ReNew Power has raised a total of $2B in funding over nine rounds. 

To recall, a year back ReNew Power had acquired of Ostro Energy Private Limited to create the country’s largest clean energy firm by installed capacity.

Source - Renew Power - Press Release

DST-backed SRI-TBI and Polyplex Launch Startup Accelerator for Environmental Sustainability, Waste Management & Renewable

Polyplex Corporation Limited, one of world's largest manufacturers of packaging film, and Shriram Institute - Technology Business Incubator (SRI-TBI), a Delhi-based business incubator of Shriram Institute for Industrial Research and supported by Department of science & technology (DST), Government of India, have announced that they have joined hands to run an Accelerator Program - 'CleanEdge' for Environmental Sustainability, Waste Management & Renewables. This is a four month program and will run from February 2019 till May 2019.

CleanEdge Accelerator program has started accepting applications. With rigorous evaluation 15 startups will be shortlisted to participate in this program.

Key offerings under this program are 1) High quality intensive mentorship by Startup Experts, Functional Strategy Experts, domain related technical & sector specific experts. 2) Access to State-of-the-Art pilot lab facility at SRI-TBI in Delhi & Co-working facility at Aspirelabs. 3) Access to 'Appropriate' Technology, Opportunity to raise Seed-Capital upto 25 lakhs. 4) Access to Impact investors and Potential Customers. 5) Post acceleration support.

With Polyplex and SRI-TBI as anchors, this program is also being significantly supported by Department of Science & Technology (DST), Government of India under its umbrella of National Initiative for Developing and Harnessing Innovations (NIDHI) scheme launched in 2016.

Who can apply - Startups working in Clean technology but not limited to -- Circular Economy, Waste Management, Recycling & Up-cycling, Plastic & Rubber, Clean water & Clean air Technologies, Renewables, 3D Printing, Smart City Solutions, Environment Sustainability.

Polyplex Corporation Limited is among the world's largest manufacturers of packaging film with manufacturing facilities in five countries and employs over 2000 people globally. Apart from Infrastructural support, Polyplex through its network brings a high-quality business mentor pool, global linkages and market access for young startups.

Shriram Institute for Industrial Research is an organization providing research and testing services in the field of plastics, rubbers, specialty chemicals and waste management. It also helps startups grow through nurturing innovative ideas into technologies and incubating entrepreneurs through its Technology Business Incubator.

This program would be executed by Aspirelabs Accelerator - founded by Ranjit Singh - Director at Polyplex Corporation Limited and an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad and BITS Pilani. Applications for CleanEdge Accelerator are now open. Program details are accessible at https://aspirelabs.com/clean-tech. Also anyone can share this article with budding entrepreneurs working in clean-tech areas in their network to help drive innovation, growth and collaboration in a socially impactful field.

Aspirelabs is a starup accelerator centrally located in Delhi-NCR with ten thousand square feet of premium office space and having access to high quality business and startup mentors. It is designed to foster entrepreneurship and innovation, and has a range of customized programs to enable young businesses and startups scale up to large profitable businesses. Aspirelabs is closely associated with Startup Oasis - a Jaipur based incubation centre of Centre for Innovation Incubation and Entrepreneurship (CIIE) which is India's leading incubator operating under the aegis of IIM Ahmedabad.

In last few years there have been number of initiatives and programs launched by organizations, young businesses, startups and even by Government of India to tackle challenges in area of environmental sustainability, Waste Management and renewable energy.

In June last year, India's Union science & technology minister Harsh Vardhan had announced that India will soon have its first international incubator to promote innovation in the field of clean energy and stimulate research, innovation, and entrepreneurship for the global initiative on clean energy. With a total investment of around $5 million, the incubator is being set up in a public-private partnership.

At the same time, Yes Bank has also launched multi sector accelerator program called YES SCALE which offers a 15 week program for startups in the areas of clean tech and Agritech, among others.

[Top Image Source - Aspire Labs@Facebook.com]

Delhi To have India's First International Incubator for Clean Energy Entrepreneurs & Innovation

India will soon have its first international incubator coming up in capital city of Delhi. The incubator will be set up to promote innovation in the field of clean energy and stimulate research, innovation, and entrepreneurship for the global initiative on clean energy, announced India's Union science & technology minister Harsh Vardhan.

With a total investment of around $5 million, the incubator is being set up in a public-private partnership and will promote entrepreneurship and innovations in the area of clean energy and provide opportunities to innovators across the Mission Innovation countries to test their technologies in the local market.

Mission Innovation (MI) is a global initiative of 22 countries and the European Union to dramatically accelerate global clean energy innovation. As part of the initiative, participating countries have committed to seek to double their governments’ clean energy research and development (R&D) investments over five years, while encouraging greater levels of private sector investment in transformative clean energy technologies.

"We, as part of the ‘Mission Innovation’ country, are setting up an international level incubator in Delhi. Stakeholders from across the world will come here and work in the field of clean energy innovation,” said Harsh Vardhan.

Notably, India is a key participant in the global initiative on clean energy research and is one of the three countries responsible for crystallizing the idea of global initiative to accelerate the pace of innovation and make clean energy widely affordable, which culminated in Mission Innovation.

“We have already announced $10 million for smart grid innovations and another $5 million for biofuels innovation as part of our commitments to promote clean energy.”, said Vardhan.

Earlier, India has also launched the joint ‘virtual clean energy centre’ with the UK and the joint ‘clean energy research and development centre on energy storage and smart grids’ with the US.

Besides, India's Department of Science and Technology is setting up a clean energy centre for integration of intermittent renewables with suitable energy storage in on grid or off grid situations.

To recall, Delhi government had too announced to launch startup incubator in lines of T-Hub, an India's largest startup incubator to date.

Source - Times of India

[Top Image - DisruptorDaily.com]

Delhi To have India's First International Incubator for Clean Energy Entrepreneurs & Innovation

India will soon have its first international incubator coming up in capital city of Delhi. The incubator will be set up to promote innovation in the field of clean energy and stimulate research, innovation, and entrepreneurship for the global initiative on clean energy, announced India's Union science & technology minister Harsh Vardhan.

With a total investment of around $5 million, the incubator is being set up in a public-private partnership and will promote entrepreneurship and innovations in the area of clean energy and provide opportunities to innovators across the Mission Innovation countries to test their technologies in the local market.

Mission Innovation (MI) is a global initiative of 22 countries and the European Union to dramatically accelerate global clean energy innovation. As part of the initiative, participating countries have committed to seek to double their governments’ clean energy research and development (R&D) investments over five years, while encouraging greater levels of private sector investment in transformative clean energy technologies.

"We, as part of the ‘Mission Innovation’ country, are setting up an international level incubator in Delhi. Stakeholders from across the world will come here and work in the field of clean energy innovation,” said Harsh Vardhan.

Notably, India is a key participant in the global initiative on clean energy research and is one of the three countries responsible for crystallizing the idea of global initiative to accelerate the pace of innovation and make clean energy widely affordable, which culminated in Mission Innovation.

“We have already announced $10 million for smart grid innovations and another $5 million for biofuels innovation as part of our commitments to promote clean energy.”, said Vardhan.

Earlier, India has also launched the joint ‘virtual clean energy centre’ with the UK and the joint ‘clean energy research and development centre on energy storage and smart grids’ with the US.

Besides, India's Department of Science and Technology is setting up a clean energy centre for integration of intermittent renewables with suitable energy storage in on grid or off grid situations.

To recall, Delhi government had too announced to launch startup incubator in lines of T-Hub, an India's largest startup incubator to date.

Source - Times of India

[Top Image - DisruptorDaily.com]

Clean-Tech Startup By Founder of BJP IT Cell ​Raises ₹2 Cr in Angel Funding

Delhi-based clean tech product startup Bonphul Air Products, the maker of OxyMax, India's first -- and the world's second -- oxygen optimizer, has raised ₹2 Crore in an Angel Investment Round from Rx Infotech and Karmesh Global Technologies.

The startup, co-founded by Prodyut Bora who's the founder of BJP IT Cell, will use the freshly raised capital for expansion of its product portfolio, and widening its sales & marketing network. It also plans to infuse funds into technology development, and roll out highly customized solutions for users in different verticals like hospitals, schools, shopping malls etc.

Earlier in October, the startup had raised an undisclosed amount of seed capital from Faridabad-based investor Satish Bhatia.

Founded in 2017 by Prodyut Bora and Narendra Bisht, Bonphul is a maker of its first flagship product OxyMax, that operates in a “split” mode, with an outdoor unit and an indoor unit. The outdoor unit harvests oxygen from the outside air and pumps it indoor, where it is dispensed by the indoor unit. This increases the oxygen level in the indoor air from its current level to 21%, creating an environment of freshness and vigour.

Interestingly, Prodyut Bora, one of the co-founders, is a founder and former head of political party Bharatiya Janata Party's IT Cell. He was also a National Executive Committee member of the BJP until he decided to leave the party in February 2015. He is an alumnus of Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-Ahmedabad).

In 2016, when Delhi was ranked the highest, by the World Health Organization, in terms of most polluted air, Prodyut and Narendra saw it as an opportunity and launched Bonphul Air Products.

Notably, an "oxygen optimiser" is different from the other popular "air-purifiers" in a sense that while an air purifier removes dust particles, an oxygen optimiser adds oxygen to air.



Commenting on the recent funding, Narendra Bisht, COO and Co-Founder said, “The company will use the invested funds for expansion of its product portfolio, and widening its sales & marketing network. The company also plans to infuse funds into technology development, and roll out highly customized solutions for users in different verticals like hospitals, schools, shopping malls etc.”

Narendra is an entrepreneur and founder-Director of Respirotech Med Solutions, the parent company of Bonphul Medsys. Started in 2009, Respirotech dealt in importing medical equipment and, over the years, had built a wide supplier network.

Via - ET Healthworld

Clean-Tech Startup By Founder of BJP IT Cell ​Raises ₹2 Cr in Angel Funding

Delhi-based clean tech product startup Bonphul Air Products, the maker of OxyMax, India's first -- and the world's second -- oxygen optimizer, has raised ₹2 Crore in an Angel Investment Round from Rx Infotech and Karmesh Global Technologies.

The startup, co-founded by Prodyut Bora who's the founder of BJP IT Cell, will use the freshly raised capital for expansion of its product portfolio, and widening its sales & marketing network. It also plans to infuse funds into technology development, and roll out highly customized solutions for users in different verticals like hospitals, schools, shopping malls etc.

Earlier in October, the startup had raised an undisclosed amount of seed capital from Faridabad-based investor Satish Bhatia.

Founded in 2017 by Prodyut Bora and Narendra Bisht, Bonphul is a maker of its first flagship product OxyMax, that operates in a “split” mode, with an outdoor unit and an indoor unit. The outdoor unit harvests oxygen from the outside air and pumps it indoor, where it is dispensed by the indoor unit. This increases the oxygen level in the indoor air from its current level to 21%, creating an environment of freshness and vigour.

Interestingly, Prodyut Bora, one of the co-founders, is a founder and former head of political party Bharatiya Janata Party's IT Cell. He was also a National Executive Committee member of the BJP until he decided to leave the party in February 2015. He is an alumnus of Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-Ahmedabad).

In 2016, when Delhi was ranked the highest, by the World Health Organization, in terms of most polluted air, Prodyut and Narendra saw it as an opportunity and launched Bonphul Air Products.

Notably, an "oxygen optimiser" is different from the other popular "air-purifiers" in a sense that while an air purifier removes dust particles, an oxygen optimiser adds oxygen to air.



Commenting on the recent funding, Narendra Bisht, COO and Co-Founder said, “The company will use the invested funds for expansion of its product portfolio, and widening its sales & marketing network. The company also plans to infuse funds into technology development, and roll out highly customized solutions for users in different verticals like hospitals, schools, shopping malls etc.”

Narendra is an entrepreneur and founder-Director of Respirotech Med Solutions, the parent company of Bonphul Medsys. Started in 2009, Respirotech dealt in importing medical equipment and, over the years, had built a wide supplier network.

Via - ET Healthworld

Meet 3 Indian Startups Which Won Top Awards At Global Cleantech Innovation Award

Clean technology innovators and entrepreneurs from India, Morocco, Pakistan, South Africa, Thailand and Turkey were honoured on 30th January at the 2018 GCIP Global Week and Cleantech Open Global Forum held in Los Angeles and it feels proud to say that this year's Global Cleantech Innovation Award has gone to an Ahmedabad-based startup we featured in 2016 -- Saathi Eco Innovations. Saathi was announced winner for developing a technology to make fully biodegradable and compostable sanitary pads made from waste banana tree fibre.

Besides, two other Indian startups that also won top awards are - Kerala-based NavAlt Solar & Electric Boats (NSEB) and Aspartika Biotech from Bengaluru. NSEB won in the Global Category Award for Renewable Energy while Aspartika won won the Global Category Award for Waste Beneficiation.

GCIP is a joint initiative of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), and is conducted in partnership with the Cleantech Open (CTO), a Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator programme. Each startup involved receives training, mentoring, and promotion, and is put in contact with potential investors, customers and partners through participation in the programme. Each national GCIP receives $1M to $2M in funding from the GEF, which is matched by $2M to $6M+ in co-financing (including in-kind) from in-country public and private-sector partners.

Here are the detailed elaboration of what these startups are doing exactly:

Saathi Eco -

Saathi has developed a technology to produce 100% biodegradable and compostable sanitary pads made from waste banana tree fiber. No water is used in the production process, and use of the pads is projected to reduce 1,011 MT of CO2 emissions and 1,323 MT of plastic waste annually. Saathi Eco Innovations’ low-cost decomposable sanitary pads, and hygiene and health awareness campaigns, also contribute to women’s empowerment in India, where only one in six women have access to sanitary pads, constraining their ability to work and attend school during menstruation. For more on Saathi ECo, read our this featured article on same.

NavAlt Solar & Electric Boats -

Founded by an IIT-Madras graduate Sandith Thandasherry, Cochin, Kerala-based NavAlt Solar & Electric Boats is building affordable solar ferries. The 20-metre-long solar ferries are India’s first solar ferries, and also the world’s most cost-effective ones with seating capacity of 75 passengers. The photovoltaic modules on the roof of these ferries will be sufficient to charge the batteries for 6-hour operation everyday. During the cloudy days of Kerala, the ferry service will still be operational with secondary charging available at the dock.

While a typical solar ferry costs rupees Rs 7.5 crore when built in Europe, the cost has been brought down to Rs 3 crore when built in India. A well-designed conventional boat which use up about Rs 20-lakh worth of fuel every year costs around Rs 2 crore in India while the solar ferries use no fuel at all. The operating cost of solar ferry is 40 units of electricity or 6.2 US$ per day which amounts to 185 US$ per month and 2,150 US$ per year.

Notably, NavAlt is a joint venture firm between Navgathi Marine Design and Constructions (Cochin, Kerala), Alternative Energies (France) and EVE Systems (France).

Aspartika Biotech -

Founded in 2015, Aspartika is a biotechnology startup incubated at the Technology Incubation Center, Sir M Visvesvaraya Institute of Technology, Bangalore. The startup focuses on the development of products from waste by utilizing the Agro-waste in the vicinity of Karnataka. The products developed by the company is silkworm pupa oil enriched with omega-3 fatty acid and poultry feed from silk industry waste. The startup started its journey in 2013 August, with a grant of Rs.49.46 Lakh with a Department of Biotechnology, Govt of India - Biotechnology Ignition Grant and has also received support from Government of Karnataka under the Idea2PoC scheme.

Related Reading - 10 Promising Cleantech Startups In India Right Now

Mumbai-based Cleantech Startup TESSOL Wins World Recognition with Startup Energy Transition Award

Mumbai-based Thermal Energy Service Solutions Private Limited (TESSOL) was announced one among the 6 winners of the Startup Energy Transition Awards recently. This award ceremony was organised by the Deutsche Energie–Agentur, the German Energy Agency (dena) for recognizing innovative business ideas in clean tech and energy transition area from across the world. All the selected startups received awards at the Berlin Energy Transition Dialogue award ceremony recently.

A leader in the field of clean technology, TESSOL bagged the award for its PLUGnCHILL system for refrigerated transport of perishables. It is a patented thermal energy storage technology provides an end to end solution for a sustainable Agricultural and Pharmaceutical Cold Chain.

To recall, IndianWeb2 too had selected TESSOL among 10 promising clean-tech startups in India.

Advantage of Technology

The international jury members chose TESSOL for this award because its PLUGnCHILL cooling systems can have high impact in increasing the efficiency of food supply worldwide. They ensure 100 % product safety, turbo charging, eco- friendly and lower operating cost and lots more.  TESSOL, according to the jury, was able to clearly demonstrate the benefits of their technology in reducing carbon emissions and fossil fuel consumption. Founder & CEO of Tessol Rajat Gupta and Product Manager Raj Dhami received the award. Tessol and five other start-ups from France, Germany, Bangladesh and Nigeria were selected from more than 500 entries from 66 countries.

TESSOL claims that its technology is cost-effective as it reduce 60% to 65% in the operating cost of refrigerated vehicles. The company is developing thermal energy storage solutions for village level pack houses, household air conditioning and hybrid system for buses.

Patented Technology

According to Founder, Rajat Gupta, an alumnus of IIT, Delhi, and Harvard University, “The refrigeration is based on a heat exchanger using an advanced phase change material (PCM) and is independent of the vehicle’s engine. It is charged from the grid and can be tuned to maintain the temperature from -25 to +15 degree celsius”. This is company’s patented technology that permits cold chain vehicles to obviate the use of diesel fuel for refrigeration.

TESSOL was founded in 2013 with an aim to provide cost-effective, energy-efficient and fuel saving storage and logistics refrigeration systems. The company is recognized as a leading player with specialties in Cold Chain Solutions, Cold Storage, Thermal Energy Storage, Renewable Energy, Industrial Process Cooling and Transport Refrigeration etc.

Top Image - Tessol Founder CEO Rajat Gupta and product manager Raj Dhami | Via - The Hindu

10 New Future Business Ideas You Need To Know

Every year, 8 out of 10 small businesses fizzle and bow out of the industry. While there could be several reasons for their failed run, one of the most common reasons in the recent times is the failure to develop a futuristic approach for their million dollar idea.

If an entrepreneur wishes to have a sustainable business, he/she not only needs to take into account the current trends, but also the future business trends for next 10 years. This means, not only analysing the problems that people are facing right now, but also being able to predict the problems that they might be facing in the coming years.

While it might seem like a twisted job, but it really isn't that difficult. All one need to do is keep a tab on all the latest business trends and closely watch the declining industries as well as the fastest growing occupations.

In order to set you on a path to success, we at Indianweb2.com have made a list of 10 of the best future business ideas for entrepreneurs.

1) 3D Printing

3D printing business is closely climbing the popularity charts. It is also one of the most profitable business ideas currently in the world, mainly because it has completely revolutionised the prototype manufacturing business.

During the starting years, 3D printers costed a bomb and were out of range for several entrepreneurs. But with the passage of time, the prices have come down but they're still a little expensive for many.

According to Wohler report 2015, 3D printer sales have climbed from 66 in the year 2007 to a whopping 232336 in the year 2015.

Currently, 3D printers range starts from $2000 and goes on till $15000 or more. The prices vary depending upon the specifications and features of the 3D printer needed.

Once you have your own 3D printers, you can set up your own shop and start advertising your business so as to attract good paying clients.

2) Real Estate Industry

With population increasing at an unprecedented rate, and a major percentage of population moving from rural areas to urban eying better jobs and life, the immediate future will witness an increase in need for affordable houses.

Hence, now can be a good time to start a business in or related to the real estate industry and cash on the future needs.

3) Healthcare Industry

According to the Labor department of United States, 10 out of every 20 fastest growing occupations in the United States are directly or indirectly related to the healthcare sector. Further, a Fortune article also clearly states that the healthcare industry has a bright future ahead of it. This is mainly because the future will witness the usage of preventive medicines increasing rapidly, and general healthcare practices being swapped with personal healthcare practices.

The healthcare sector is expected to generate more than 3 million jobs by 2018. The need for so many jobs will arise due to the rapid expansion of world population. So, if you want to start a business related to the healthcare industry, the future seems bright.

4) Renewable Clean Energy Supplies

The alarming rate at which the world population is growing each year is known by almost everyone, but what is more alarming is the fact that a majority of Asian countries still depend on traditional sources of energies such as nuclear, coal and hydro power plants to satiate their energy needs. Since the Earth only has a limited pool of resources, this is proving to be catastrophic for the environment.

In order to find out a solution for this problem, several scientists are now emphasising on the usage of renewable energy sources. People with a zeal to save the environment and the future of the Earth can come with several green business idea and chart a successful future for themselves as well as other inhabitants of the planet.

5) Outsourcing Business

The working environments are going for a major change in the near future, according to a WEF report. Outsourcing business is expected to become the talk of the town by the year 2020, especially if you are a construction business who wants to outsource a company that offers drywall estimating services.

About 50% of Americans own their own small businesses. The same trends can be witnessed in several other big countries like the UK, Australia, and Canada. The one big challenge they face is that if they hire employees from their own country, they will not be able to make good profits due to the high operating costs. This is why, in order to maximise their startup's profits, and reduce costs, they outsource their work to people in developing countries, where the manufacturing and operational costs are comparatively lower than their own native countries.

Freelance business is also growing at a phenomenal rate in developing countries such as India, Pakistan, Nepal etc. In order to provide virtual services online, all one requires is a good internet connection and specific skills set.

6) Internet of Things (IOT) Industry

IoT is the next big thing that is going to completely change the way humans live, just the way internet did a few decades back.

The world of Internet of Things (IoT) has opened us all to a world where we now have the power to automate, protect, and monitor our houses like never before. Not only this, one can now keep an eye on their children while out for work, integrate their home theater system, protect the house from theft, and even extend a helping hand in reducing capital spent on energy consumption.

According to Mckinsey Global Institute, the IoT industry has a potential to generate $4 Trillion to $11 Trillion in value worldwide by the year 2025.

So, IoT can prove to be a safe bet when thinking about future business ideas.

7) Co-Working Spaces

With the increasing rents, the working space is going to see a major change in the coming future. Separate offices will be replaced by co-working spaces so as to curb the expenses and keep the company above waters away from the burden of avoidable big rentals bills. Hence, starting a co-working space could be a smart decision right now.

8) Collaborative Economy Business

Businesses based on collaborative economy models like UBER, LYFT, Airbnb etc. are expected to grow immensely in the period pf next few years. Such businesses not only extend a helping hand to end customers but also assist the service providers, which ultimately makes them commissions.

9) Consumer Goods and Services Business

The middle-class population is expected to rise up to 3 billion by the year 2030. This population increase would result in an increase in consumption of goods and services. Hence, a business in goods and services has a huge growth potential.

10) Consultancy Business

Experts predict consultancy business witnessing good growth in the future. This could be mainly because of rise of entrepreneurial trends, increasing unemployment issues worldwide or high inflationary rates. Hence, starting a consultancy business like recruitment firm, career consultancy firm, or customer consultancy etc. can prove to be profitable for the long haul.

This New Technology Could Light The World Using Gravitation

Gravity is the miracle that keeps us grounded on this very planet Earth, but years pass by that we even acknowledge its presence. But, did you know this marvelous downward force also has the potential of lighting the whole wide world?

According to current statistics, till the year 2015, about 1.1 billion people all around the world were still living without access to energy. A majority of these people are surviving by depending on kerosene lamps, which a number of studies have claimed is immensely harmful to their health. In fact, inhaling the toxic fumes coming from these kerosene lamps is almost equivalent to smoking 170 cigarettes a year. This unintentional ingestion of kerosene is currently the leading cause of child poisoning in developing countries all around the world.

In addition to the respiratory issues, these kerosene lamps also pose a number of other problems. For example, in the Indian subcontinent alone, about a million people suffer moderate to severe burns by overturned kerosene lamps every year.

The GravityLight Foundation is focused at bringing a safe and bright future to all those areas of the world with limited or no electricity access through its innovative GravityLight lamps, which make use of the power of gravity. The Foundation is a UK Registered Charity that is working towards alleviating poverty and protecting environment through innovative designs.



Developed by designers Jim Reeves and Martin Riddiford, GravityLight is a simple, low-cost gear-train and generator that makes use of a descending weight to power a perpetual light source. The lamps give people who are currently living in a dark after the sun goes down a possibility to add new possibilities and dimensions to their lives.

By exploring the potential that the simple but infinite force of gravity has to offer, the GravityLight Foundation has been successfully able to substantially reduce a number of issues related to energy inaccessibility and risks to public health, and thus making way for a brighter and safer future for those who currently need it the most.

So, how does the GravityLight lamps work?

When gravity is doing its natural thing and pulling the rocks to planet Earth, the force ends up pulling a strap, which in turn spins gears, driving an electric generator to power an LED. Though it is a chain reaction, but it ends up working successfully. Each of such journeys to the ground ends up creating enough energy to keep the light running continuously for 20 minutes. The device can easily reduce the crucial issue of energy expense in the developing countries of the world as after the initial purchase of a GravityLight lamp, there are no operating costs, and the lamps last for several years.

After having its second successful crowdfunding campaign, The GravityLight Foundation is currently on a 50 Night Tour across 50 villages of Kenya. The tour aims to introduce the kerosene lamps using people of the Kenyan population the wonders of a GravityLight lamp.

IAN Incubator and Johnson Matthey are Back with Cleantech Incubation Programme Season II to Support Disruptive Green Technologies

IAN Incubator esatabilished by Indian Angel Network (IAN) and Johnson Matthey have collaborated again to empower entrepreneur eco-space to take the next step forward as a part of the incubation programme - cleantech season II. The programme will encourage entrepreneurs to create innovative and disruptive solutions in the space of clean technologies.

IAN Incubator brings in high quality mentorship with deep understanding of the entrepreneurial journey and bridges the gap between mentoring and nurturing entrepreneurs with innovative technology and assists them to kick-start their journey towards success. Johnson Matthey is a global leader in sustainable technologies.

With focus on clean air, clean water, clean energy and low carbon technologies, the platform is a one stop solution providing entrepreneurs every support possible from grants, mentoring through incubation to a chance to raise investments.

Programme highlights are as follows:

• Grants of upto INR 10 lacs for selected incubatees



• One-on-one mentoring by investors/industry experts



• Customer validation/industry connects



• Structured incubation programme powered by IAN Incubator for a period of upto 12 months



• On graduation the companies  get an opportunity to pitch for raising investments

Saurabh Srivastava, co-founder Indian Angel Network, IAN Incubator and Chairman Emeritus, TiE Delhi-NCR commented, “Season II of  the cleantech incubation programme is an extended initiative that aims at incubating startups which are looking for innovative techniques to control fuel and energy consumption. It’s a pleasure to work closely with a tech leader like Johnson Matthey. Our vision together is to mentor these early stage businesses and help them discover pioneering ideas in clean technologies.”

Nick Garner, Director, Group Business Development, Johnson Matthey Plc. commented, “The clean technology space in India continues to excite us. We received huge interest from entrepreneurs and we look forward to keep investing in new ideas for a mutually beneficial partnership.”

Alok Khetan, Managing Director, Johnson Matthey India said, “Season 1 was very enriching and we have made good progress and are delighted to continue our journey towards being leaders in clean technology space in emerging markets like India."

About IAN Incubator:

Indian Angel Network (IAN), the pioneer of Angel Investing in India, has established the IAN Incubator with the support of National Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Development Board, Department of Science & Technology, Govt. of India. IAN Incubator believes that early stage businesses require more than just money to succeed. They require close mentoring and inputs on strategy as well as execution. The IAN Incubator provides entrepreneurs with best in class industry leaders/investors/domain experts as mentors to support them in business planning, one to one mentoring, assistance recruiting their top team, commercializing their technologies, getting early engagement and customer validations from the market, transfer of technologies, assistance getting early seed funding, help in forging partnerships at the national and global level, advice on intellectual property, training and development and many other things.

About Johnson Matthey:

Johnson Matthey is a global leader in sustainable technologies and many of the group’s products enhance the quality of life of millions through their beneficial impact on the environment, human health and wellbeing. The company focuses on clean air, clean energy and low carbon technologies and is an expert in the application and recycling of precious metals.

Johnson Matthey has operations in over 30 countries and employs around 13,000 people. Its products and services are sold across the world to a wide range of advanced technology industries. The company has been endowed with many awards and accolades for outstanding work in field of sustainable development, with most notable ones being “Britain's most admired company” award and “The Queen’s award for enterprise in sustainable development” in 2014.

Johnson Matthey was founded in 1817 and has its headquarters in London. The company has been operating in India for more than four decades, providing globally acclaimed services across a wide range of industries including pharmaceuticals, automotive, precious metals, fertilizers, contract research organisations, laboratories and refineries.