Delhi Govt, CGTMSE Launch ₹10 Cr Collateral-Free Loan Scheme for Entrepreneurs

Delhi has launched a new collateral-free loan scheme for small entrepreneurs, offering up to ₹10 crore in credit through a government-backed guarantee program. The initiative, announced on January 28, 2026, aims to boost startups, traders, and micro-enterprises by removing barriers to financing.

The Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) plays a crucial role in enabling collateral-free loans for India’s MSMEs by providing credit guarantees to banks and financial institutions. This reduces the risk for lenders and makes it easier for small businesses and startups to access formal credit.

In the Delhi Government’s collateral-free loan scheme for small entrepreneurs, the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) plays the central role of providing the primary credit guarantee.

CGTMSE covers 75–90% of the loan amount extended by banks/NBFCs to small entrepreneurs under this scheme. By absorbing most of the risk, CGTMSE makes lenders more confident in disbursing loans without collateral.  

The Delhi Government steps in to provide the remaining guarantee coverage (10–25%), ensuring that 100% of the loan is backed. The scheme is implemented through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Delhi Government and CGTMSE, making it a joint guarantee framework.  

Key Highlights of the Scheme

• Loan Amount: Up to ₹10 crore available for small entrepreneurs, startups, and traders.
• Collateral-Free: No need to pledge property or assets.
• Guarantee Structure: Centre (CGTMSE) covers 75–90% of the loan; Delhi Government provides the remaining guarantee.
• Launch Date: Announced on January 28, 2026 by Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta.
• Partnership: Implemented through MoU between Delhi Government and CGTMSE.

Objectives

• Support Innovation: Encourage startups and new ventures in Delhi.
• Job Creation: Generate employment opportunities by easing access to capital.
• Inclusive Growth: Ensure small businesses and traders can expand without financial roadblocks.

Benefits for Entrepreneurs

• Reduced Risk: Entrepreneurs don’t need to risk personal or family assets.
• Access to Larger Loans: Higher credit limits compared to traditional schemes.
• Government Backing: Stronger trust between banks and borrowers due to dual guarantees.
• Focus on Growth: Businesses can channel funds into expansion, innovation, and hiring.

Potential Challenges & Considerations

• Bank Procedures: Entrepreneurs must still meet eligibility and documentation requirements.
• Creditworthiness: Banks may scrutinize business plans and financial viability more closely.
• Awareness & Outreach: Success depends on effective promotion among small entrepreneurs.

Comparison with Other Schemes

Feature	Delhi Credit Guarantee Scheme	National CGTMSE Scheme
Loan Limit	Up to ₹10 crore	Typically up to ₹2 crore
Guarantee Coverage	75–90% (Centre) + Delhi Govt	75–85% (Centre only)
Target Audience	Delhi-based entrepreneurs, startups, traders	MSMEs nationwide
Collateral Requirement	None	None

This scheme is a major boost for Delhi’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, especially for startups and small businesses struggling with access to capital.

To recall, Delhi government recently announced Startup Policy with ₹325 crore outlay over 5 years to support 5,000 Startups by 2035.

Climate Entrepreneurship Moves Beyond Metros: Greenr Data Maps Rise of Green Startups in India’s Tier 2/3 Cities

• The data maps 300+ climate startups across 106 cities in 28 states
• Waste management, agroforestry, textiles, and energy emerge as the top four key sectors, with 60% of green enterprises focused on addressing India’s critical waste challenges
• Small-town founders, majority with under five years’ experience, lead the shift; solutions span households, RWAs, schools, corporates and municipalities. 
• Complements national priorities including Swachh Bharat (Urban) 2.0, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for plastics, and Mission LiFE’s circularity goals, reinforcing India’s commitment to sustainable growth

Data from the Greenr Sustainability Accelerator by TechnoServe, supported by the IKEA Foundation and Visa Foundation, indicates an interesting perspective wherein India's climate entrepreneurship landscape or India's climate innovation is not restricted to Tier-1 cities. Across three cohorts, the program has supported 300+ small and growing green businesses (SGBs) spanning 106 cities in 28 states. Of this, nearly 45% of the startups come from Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, signalling the growing decentralisation of climate innovation in the country.

Notably, 60% of these enterprises are focused on addressing India’s waste management challenges, highlighting the critical role played by entrepreneurs from smaller cities in tackling some of the nation’s most pressing environmental issues. These startups are driving innovation across critical segments within each sector. For example, in waste management, key sub-sectors include e-waste, wastewater management, plastics recycling, upcycling, and the development of green construction materials from agricultural waste among others. The data specifically identifies waste management, agroforestry, textiles, and energy as the top four emerging sectors for climate innovation, showcasing a diverse entrepreneurial landscape across India. Their work complements national priorities including Swachh Bharat (Urban) 2.0, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for plastics, and Mission LiFE’s circularity goals, reinforcing India’s commitment to sustainable growth.

The strategic support provided by the Greenr Sustainability Accelerator is translating into tangible results. Over the past two cohorts, Greenr-backed startups have demonstrated an impressive 61% average revenue growth and contributed to a 24% increase in job creation. To further fuel this growth, the program has facilitated over $16 million in funding, structured across 55% equity, 35% debt, and 10% grants, enabling these green businesses to scale their solutions and maximize their impact.

This entrepreneurial surge is largely driven by a new cohort of founders, with a majority having less than five years of business experience, underscoring the rise of fresh entrepreneurial ecosystems beyond traditional startup hubs. Reinforcing this shift, 60% of the Greenr-supported businesses are women-led, showcasing significant female leadership in India's climate action. This vibrant ecosystem is particularly prominent in a diverse set of Tier 2 and 3 cities including Jaipur, Bhubaneshwar, Surat, Indore, Coimbatore, Kochi, Guwahati, Madurai, Dehradun, and Bhopal, which collectively represent the top 10 cities for Greenr-backed innovation.

Ajay Menon, Senior Practice Lead at TechnoServe India and Program Director, Greenr Sustainability Accelerator, says: “India’s climate transition will be won in Tier-2 and Tier-3 India. The entrepreneurs we work with are building practical solutions where the need is greatest - converting waste to value, renewable energy, and circularity at the last mile, rather than chasing unicorn valuations. When we combine hands-on, bespoke advisory with access to fairly priced financing (equity, debt or grant funding) and market linkages, these founders grow revenues, create jobs, and deliver measurable environmental outcomes. The data is clear: climate innovation is no longer a metro story; it’s a small-town movement. And it requires continued momentum, powered by systemic change from a convening of the right stakeholders to provide the needed support in terms of business building, financing, access to markets, support for pilots and changes to policy in favour of circular economic business models.”

A prime example of this success is Plastroots from Nagpur, Maharashtra. This zero-landfill waste management company provides end-to-end dry waste solutions and circular economy models for communities, governments, and industries. Founded in 2019, Plastroots directly addresses the challenge of unsegregated rural waste, where nearly 75% often goes unmanaged by structured systems. With Greenr's support, Plastroots successfully scaled its Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) compliance vertical, generating over ₹3 crore in revenue within 12 months, achieved 5x business growth, and expanded operations across Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan.

About Greenr Sustainability Accelerator

The Greenr Sustainability Accelerator by TechnoServe, supported by the IKEA Foundation and Visa Foundation, is one of the largest not-for-profit accelerators dedicated to green small and growing businesses (Green SGBs). Launched in 2023, the program supports startups in sectors such as waste management, textiles, agroforestry, cleantech, renewable energy, green construction, food & agriculture, and feminine hygiene. Over the past two years, Greenr has enabled 200+ green startups to achieve 61% average revenue growth, unlock $16M in funding, and create 24% more jobs. The accelerator provides 12–15 months of hands-on support, including a dedicated business advisor, access to market and corporate linkages, green financing opportunities, and impact measurement through Environmental Impact Assessments. By combining TechnoServe’s five decades of global expertise with deep local networks, Greenr empowers entrepreneurs to build scalable businesses that generate environmental impact, and help India gradually transition from a linear to a circular economy.

Learn more: www.getgreenr.org

Jagannathuni Ratha Chakralu: A Poetic Call to Resilience for Entrepreneurs

In the vast landscape of Telugu poetry, Sri Sri’s Jagannathuni Ratha Chakralu stands as a powerful anthem of perseverance and revolution. Written as part of his seminal work Mahaprasthanam, this poem is not just a literary masterpiece—it is a rallying cry for those who feel crushed under the weight of adversity. For struggling entrepreneurs, the poem offers a profound message: keep moving forward, no matter how insurmountable the obstacles may seem.

If you are an entrepreneur building something from the ground, determination, and a whole lot of resilience—just like the unstoppable chariot in the poem. This poem is for you.

A part this Telugu poem translates to English as—

Don't cry, don't cry. 
The wheels of the chariot of Jagannath are coming; they are coming

The apocalyptic chant of the chariot wheel

Will set it on the earth

Will create an earthquake

Where to?

To create an earthquake! 

The Poem’s Essence: A Chariot That Never Stops

The poem vividly describes the relentless movement of Jagannath’s chariot, symbolizing unstoppable progress. Sri Sri addresses the downtrodden—those who have been rejected, defeated, and left behind by society. He urges them not to despair, for the wheels of change are in motion. The chariot does not pause for setbacks  it crushes stagnation and propels forward. 

For entrepreneurs, this imagery is deeply relevant. Every startup faces moments of failure—funding hurdles, market rejections, and unforeseen crises. But just like the chariot, the spirit of innovation must keep rolling. The poem reminds us that setbacks are temporary, and those who persist will eventually shape the future.

Lessons for Entrepreneurs

1. Resilience Over Regret The poem’s refrain—“Don’t cry, don’t cry. The wheels of the chariot are coming!”—is a direct call to action. Entrepreneurs must embrace failures as stepping stones rather than reasons to quit. Every setback is an opportunity to refine strategies and push forward.
2. Revolutionary Thinking Sri Sri’s poetry was deeply rooted in social change. He believed in breaking old systems to create new possibilities. Entrepreneurs, too, must challenge conventional norms, disrupt industries, and bring fresh perspectives to the table.
3. Momentum is Key The chariot does not stop—it moves with force, crushing obstacles in its path. Similarly, businesses must maintain momentum. Whether it’s adapting to market shifts or pivoting strategies, stagnation is the real enemy.
4. Community and Collective Strength The poem speaks to thepower of unity—the collective force of the oppressed rising together. Entrepreneurs should recognize the value of networking, collaboration, and shared vision. No great venture is built in isolation.

Final Thoughts: The Entrepreneur’s Chariot

Sri Sri’s Jagannathuni Ratha Chakralu is more than poetry—it is a philosophy of unstoppable progress. For entrepreneurs navigating uncertainty, the poem serves as a reminder that the journey is never truly over. The wheels of innovation, resilience, and determination must keep turning.

So, if you ever feel like giving up, remember: the chariot is coming. Keep moving forward.🚀

Amazon Promotes Entrepreneurship and Financial Literacy for 30,000 Women and Young People

‘Entrepreneurship for Enablement’ program has a vision to enable and transform local businesses, providing them with financial and digital literacy and opportunities to become sellers on ecommerce platforms, ensuring long term success of this innovative enterprise

Amazon India announced the launch of a three-year programme “Entrepreneurship for Enablement” to help 30,000 women and young people learn about starting their own business and managing their finances. The programme will run in collaboration with ACCESS Development Services, a livelihoods support organization with focus on incubating innovations for sustainable livelihoods. Co-created and funded by Amazon, the initiative will run across the states of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Maharashtra. The launch event in Gurugram on March 20, 2025, brought together key stakeholders including officials from Development Department, Gurugram, Reserve Bank of India, The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) and Rural Development & Self Employment Training Institute (RUDSETI), who discussed opportunities and challenges in the development of entrepreneurs.

With a focus on women’s entrepreneurship, the programme aims to provide business development training and support to up to 3,000 entrepreneurs through structured mentorship programs. Additionally, the program plans to offer digital literacy training for up to 24,000 participants focusing on smartphone usage, while facilitating digital payment platform training for up to 22,000 individuals.

The program will also support the establishment of 1,200 new enterprises, with 80% expected to achieve INR 1 lakh annual revenue by their third year. It will also develop 10 model enterprises, half of which will be women-led, which are expected to generate INR 10 to 25 lakhs in annual turnover and create new employment opportunities. The programme will also aim to create opportunities for these entrepreneurs to sell offline as well as online.

Mr. Vipin Sharma, CEO, ACCESS Development Services said, "Empowering women entrepreneurs is crucial to unlocking India's economic resilience and achieving its $5 trillion aspiration. Our 'Entrepreneurship for Enablement' initiative with Amazon aims to bridge critical gaps, equipping women and youth with skills, finance, and digital tools to establish thriving businesses. Together, we can catalyze a wave of women-led enterprises, driving sustainable growth, unlocking new opportunities, and harnessing the gender dividend for a more inclusive economy."

Dr Karuna Shankar Pande, Vice President, Amazon Logistics India said, “Entrepreneurship is a key driver of economic growth, and through this initiative, we aim to equip women and young people with the resources and skills they need to build sustainable businesses. Through this initiative, we aim to augment India’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, unlocking economic opportunities and empowering tens of thousands of individuals to become self-reliant by 2027. Our community impact initiatives like these are designed to empower the communities we serve in, enabling digital and financial inclusion and also ensuring long-term opportunities and benefits for them.”

The project will be implemented and scaled across 3 States (cluster of 5 to 8 villages) while maintaining a dual focus on knowledge building and enterprise development.

In Haryana, the project will focus on three clusters in the Farukhnagar and Taoru areas of Gurgaon district, specifically targeting Jamalpur, Sehsola, Binola, and Bhora Kalan. These locations have the potential for the growth of agricultural enterprises, food manufacturing units, retail businesses, handicrafts, and beauty services.

In Uttar Pradesh, the initiative will concentrate on two key clusters—Bhaukapur in Lucknow and Bajhera in Unnao, where there is significant scope for traditional handicrafts like chikankari and terracotta work, along with banking correspondent units, retail stores, garment businesses, and food service establishments.

In Maharashtra, the project will operate across three clusters in the Bhiwandi area. The focus will be on developing businesses around traditional handicrafts such as pottery and warli paintings, power loom units, food manufacturing, and service-oriented businesses such as tutoring and catering services. The geographies of the project aim to cater to diverse entrepreneurial opportunities while building on existing skills and market potential in each region.

Amazon India is committed to being a force for good in our communities. Since 2014, our community engagement has evolved to address key social needs, from education and livelihoods to health, environmental sustainability, and disaster response. Today, we focus on food and nutrition security, livelihoods, and associate welfare through structured, long-term programs. By collaborating with NGOs, local ambassadors, and community stakeholders, we strive to create lasting, meaningful impact.

'SHARKZ' vs ‘Shark Tank’: A Game-Changing Twist on Showcasing South India’s Entrepreneurs

The business era is transforming rapidly, and so should the opportunity for entrepreneurs. SHARKZ is here to break barriers and create fair and safe opportunity space for innovations. SHARKZ offers a level playing field where dedication, passion, creativity, and talent are the only things that matter.

Entrepreneurs around India can now have access to expert guidance, funding, and global networking opportunities, regardless of their background or the language they speak, without limits. SHARKZ makes sure that every aspiring entrepreneur gets the equal support that they deserve, making it easier for them to launch and expand their business.

“Great purposes don't have any language, and neither should opportunities,” says Mr. Arun Kumar, co-founder of SHARKZ. “Our goal is to build a business space where success is committed by passion, vision, innovation, and hard work—not by the language you speak.

”SHARKZ" is more than just an investment stage—it is a complete habitat for aspiring business leaders. On SHARKZ, startups will not only receive financial support but will also earn access to top industry mentors, business development tools, and strategically planned guidance. The platform will connect entrepreneurs with knowledgeable, experienced investors and business leaders from across the industry, ensuring that they receive proper guidance and support to expand their business successfully.

By excluding language barriers. SHARKZ allows entrepreneurs to present their business ideas confidently, whether they are from small towns or big cities. The platform promotes collaborations, allowing founders to learn from each other and grow in supportive environments and have healthy competition.

As SHARKZ continues to scale, it remains committed to a healthy environment, fairness, inclusivity, and empowering entrepreneurs to grow in a global marketplace. Success will no longer be scaled by language but by determination, innovation, and the craze to create and achieve the extraordinary.

About "Sharkz"

"Sharkz" is a reality show designed to empower regional entrepreneurs by providing them with a platform to pitch their ideas in their native language. The show brings together experienced investors and mentors to guide and support founders as they navigate the challenges of entrepreneurship.

With its unique format and regional focus, "Sharkz" aims to inspire and uplift the next generation of Indian entrepreneurs to global level. The "Sharkz" business initiative started under the direction of two strategic business creators. The seasoned Singapore-based businessman Mr. Krishnamani Kannan has dedicated his career for more than 20 years as he actively supports startups through his role as an angel investor over the past ten years. His deep industry knowledge combined with extensive connections from the startup field gives him tremendous worth as a mentor. Mr. Arun Kumar also leads "Sharkz" as co-founder and serves as the founder of ParkQwik while using his knowledge and innovation for this initiative. He dedicates himself to developing future business leaders because of his experience running businesses.

Indian B-Schools Doubt ​the ​Value of Their Own People: Aman Gupta, Shark on Shark Tank India, Entrepreneur and Investor

Aman Gupta and Ritu Shah

ISB where I studied never invited me. Ghar Ki Murgi Daal Barabar. Indian business schools doubt ​the ​value of their own people: Aman Gupta, Shark on Shark Tank India, Entrepreneur and Investor

Ghar Ki Murgi Daal Barabar (Familiarity breeds contempt). People are often taken for granted the things that are familiar to them. The same may be the case with ISB (Indian School of Business), where I studied. Harvard Business School invited me. It calls me every year. It wrote a case study on us, but ISB ignored me, it never invited me. Looks like Indian business schools don’t value their own people said Aman Gupta, Shark Tank India fame.

But Hyderabad is the lucky city for me. I have so many memories of this place. Many firsts have happened here, he said.

boAt, the company I co-founded, created history. It has become the 2nd biggest wearable brand in the world. We placed India on the global wearables map, homegrown brand achieving it is a matter of great pride. boAt has also solidified its position in the Indian market by capturing significant market share, shared Aman Gupta.

Ritu Shah Chairperson of FLO seen presenting a Book it brought out recently 

Indian brands are here to stay and they are all set to go places, he declared. People are buying Indian brands, he said.

I worked with JBL, an American audio equipment manufacturer. Now I am the biggest competitor to them, he said.

He was in the city at the invitation of the FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO). He addressed 200 plus members on “Ride on the Waves of Success with The Great Indian Shark with Aman Gupta” on Saturday evening at Hotel Park in Somajiguda.

Giving her welcome address Ritu Shah, Chairperson of FLO Hyderabad recalled what once Hillary Clinton said, ‘Women are the largest untapped reservoir of talent in the world — Talent which once given direction shall take them a long way in life”. Historically women faced many challenges and barriers. And they overcame with determination.

 

Seen FLO members at a session organised by it

The hall was packed. Women were very enthusiastic to listen to him. Seeing in such large numbers, he said “I am nervous. I have never addressed so many women in one place”. He struggled a bit in the begging but gained confidence and earned their trust. He was at his best with his humour. He made his 45 minutes talk very jovial and fun.

I had six failures before boAt happened. I never looked back. In a short span, we have reached the 1 crore units mark. Nearly 5000 people work in our company. The valuation of our company is Rs 10,000 crore. I hold a 25% share. Our sales revenues stand at Rs 4000 crore. We were profitable on day one. I don’t have to work for money. I have sufficient money. I no longer run my business. It is now run by professionals. What drives me most is people, their energy and enthusiasm. I invest in people. I love being busy. I like to inspire people.

Now I am being invited to deliver guest lectures and I am paid for it. The additional money now I make by way of speaking assignments I give to charity, he said.

Aman Gupta admitted that he was never a technocrat. But, JBL where he worked had made some good learning. And some of the people who were his colleagues joined him to build boAt, technically superior products. He was asked what if his own colleagues desert him and pose a competition. He replied that he takes care of his employees well. I don’t want another Aman Gupta born out of my company he said.

When asked between Idea and execution, what he prefers? The idea is good, but the execution is great. Success comes sometimes out of hard work, luck, idea, execution and what have you, he said.

He gave eight lessons of success that guided him through his success. They are 01. Customer is king, 2. Frugality, 3. Back to basics, 5. Do what floats your boat, 6. Money and Mann, 7. Let youngsters run your business and 8. Ham bhi bana (we too can do) attitude.

Unleashing the Power of Innovation: Matrix Global Summit 2023 Ignites DeepTech, Make in India Entrepreneurship, and Student Entrepreneurs

Launched Matrix University awards and three industry-specific thought leadership series reports during the summit

TiE Bangalore, a trailblazer in India's entrepreneurial landscape, presented the 8th edition of The Matrix Global Summit 2023 in Bengaluru on 7th and 8th June 2023. This flagship annual event focused on driving innovation from India in the fields of DeepTech, and Make in India, empowering tech startups worldwide, with a special emphasis on student entrepreneurs pioneering groundbreaking solutions. Embracing the spirit of Samudra Manthan Amrut – riding the waves of disruption, the summit highlighted the transformative power of disruption as a catalyst for innovation and growth within the entrepreneurial spirit.

Matrix Global Summit 2023 encompassed a rich content comprising Conference in three tracks, 7 workshops running in parallel, Start-Up Showcase and 8th edition of Matrix Awards for Start-Ups Nite. Matrix Global Summit conducted the first Matrix University Awards, in collaboration with Karnataka Digital Economy Mission ( KDEM) and Visvesvaraya Technology University (VTU).

The Matrix University Awards aims to promote entrepreneurship and foster the participation of engineering college students across India. TiE Bangalore, partnered with TiE Mysuru, Hubli, and Mangaluru, to organize this university contest.

During the summit, Matrix Forum under its thought leadership series, unveiled three industry-specific reports ( you heard it first ) :

1. Industrial IOT Protocols – Open Source Knowledge Base
2. 5G Enterprise Private Networks – Use Cases & Applications
3. Vision for Smart Airports in in India

The two-day summit featured expert speakers and workshops that contributed to an enriching and transformative experience for all attendees by providing thought-provoking perspectives and valuable knowledge to inspire and guide participants on their entrepreneurial journeys.

This year's distinguished speakers include Padma Bhushan Dr Devi Shetty, Dr Suparna Bhattacharya - HPE Fellow at AI Research Lab, Hewlett Packard Labs; Prof David Schimel - IPCC - Nobel Prize and Founder, Entelligent; Prof S. Sadagopan - Founding Director, IIIT Bangalore; SP Shukla, Chairman - Defence, Aero & Agri Sectors, Mahindra Group and President - Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers Association; Eshan Nanda - Chief Architect for Social Innovations at Dell Technologies and Dr Ashok Dalwai - CEO, National Rainfed Area Authority (NRAA) in the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Govt. of India.

"This year we are delighted with the focused and varied content for Start-ups - industry specific reports, hands-on workshops and the showcase of 10 startups. The Matrix Global Summit has consistently been at the forefront of driving innovation and collaboration within the tech ecosystem," said Madan Padaki, President of TiE Bangalore. "By focusing on DeepTech startups and Make in India enterprises, we aim to highlight the transformative potential of these sectors and provide a springboard for their success.”

Attendees had the opportunity to connect with industry leaders, visionaries, and professionals from around the world, creating valuable connections and opening doors to global business opportunities with deep insights into emerging areas such as AI, IoT, quantum, and other disruptive technologies that are reshaping industries. The sessions were led by renowned experts, providing practical and actionable knowledge to help organizations navigate the evolving tech landscape.

At this year’s summit dedicated to DeepTech Innovations, Make in India Entrepreneurship, and Student Entrepreneurs, we had the privilege of witnessing cutting-edge IoT Matrix technology solutions across diverse domains, several of them for the very first time. The active participation from startups was remarkable, showcasing their innovative ideas and contribution “, expressed T R Anand, Chairperson, Matrix Forum, & Board Member, TiE Bangalore. “We extend our heartfelt gratitude to our generous sponsors, whose unwavering support made this event possible, empowering the growth and success of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in India."

A grand 8th Matrix Awards 2023 Nite recognized outstanding startups in various sectors including Edtech, Healthtech, Cleantech, QuantumTech, Aerospace & Defence, Agritech, AI/ML, Maritime Tech, and Sustainability. The winners, spotted for Innovation and Scaling UP, emerged from over a hundred applications for the coveted award. In addition, the first Matrix University Awards were also presented during the event.

The Matrix Global Summit 2023 is sponsored by TE Connectivity, Hewlett Packard Enterprises, AWS, Cisco for Startups, IIIT-Bangalore and Technosphere. For more information about the Matrix Global Summit 2023, please visit https://www.matrixglobalsummit.in/

About TiE Bangalore

The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) Global is the largest non-profit organization and has an amazing networking effect. TiE connects the entire entrepreneurship ecosystem, including early-stage entrepreneurs, serial entrepreneurs, professionals at leading corporations, venture capitalists, angel investors, and thought leaders, among others. The organization emphasizes the spirit of giving in all aspects of its work.

The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) Bangalore chapter was founded in 1999 as one of India’s first TiE chapters, with Nandan Nilekani as the founding president. Currently, Madan Padaki (founder & CEO, 1Bridge and co-founder of GAME) is the president of TiE Bangalore. TiE Bangalore boasts a strong network of over 200 charter members, 600+ associate members, and 200+ student members. TiE Bangalore has also engaged deeply with over 300+ start-ups through various cohorts such as TiE Women, EdTech, Healthcare, Matrix Awards, VentuRISE, Sanjeevini SRLM, and more, providing valuable support and guidance to these budding entrepreneurs.

https://hub.tie.org/c/tiebangalore

Vauld, a Leading Crypto Trading & Lending Platform's Founders Feature in Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 List

Darshan Bathija (28), Sanju Kurian (29), Co-founders of Singapore-based crypto trading and lending exchange platform, featured in Forbes Asia – 30 under 30

SINGAPORE, June 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- On 28 May 2022, Vauld founders - Darshan Bathija and Sanju Kurian - were featured in Forbes Asia 30 under 30 list.

Founded in 2018 by Darshan Bathija and Sanju Kurian, Vauld, a Singapore-based global Crypto platform, provides a suite of products that focus on long-term wealth generation for its crypto investors, including fixed deposits and asset-backed lending and borrowing. Vauld is easy to use, intuitive, and also provides automatic investment plans that focus on wealth creation for its customer base.

Sanju Kurian, CTO & Co-founder of Vauld (left) & Darshan Bathija, CEO & Co-founder of Vauld 

In July 2021, Vauld raised $25 million in a Series A funding round led by PayPal founder Peter Thiel's Valar Ventures. The company has customers from 190 countries and average deposits per customer of $20,000. Vauld recently announced a multi-year partnership with F1 Team Alfa Romeo.

On being featured in Forbes, Darshan Bathija said: "We have great people working together as a team of high performers. We're looking forward to taking our learnings and providing new features and tools to help our investors realize their financial objectives."

Sanju Kurian said: "I have always been fascinated by finance and the field of cryptocurrencies excited me. With Vauld, we now aim to make it a neo-bank like any of the nationalized banks in India with the help of our very well-learned and knowledgeable team.

About Darshan Bathija, Co-founder & CEO

Darshan comes from a family background of 4 generations of financiers. He has worked as the Head of Partnerships at TapChief. Before TapChief, he worked at Piramal Capital, a real estate NBFC and facilitated loans totalling $100 million against assets.

About Sanju Kurian, Co-founder & CTO

Sanju built the technical team at Kings Leaning from the ground up, which served more than 20 million users across various platforms. He has led multiple teams across multiple domains, including Python/Django, native mobile development (Android IOS, KaiOS), AngularJS, DevOps, design, and analytics.

Website – https://www.vauld.com/

SOURCE Vauld

Indywood Billionaires Club Honors Entrepreneurs in Karnataka With the Indywood Business Excellence Awards 2022

Post-Covid, Indywood Billionaires Club returned to the Garden City of India - Bengaluru to conduct its prestigious Indywood Business Awards 2022. The event concluded on a spectacular note on Last week of April 2022 at JW Marriot Hotel, Bangalore. Organized by BizEvents Management, the event honored top industrialists, billionaires and the promising young entrepreneurs within the state of Karnataka who have made significant contributions to the industry, spearheading IBC to its collective dream of strengthening the Indian Rupee, and to make it equivalent to 1 US Dollar.

To strengthen the country’s economy, Indywood Billionaires Club aims to open doors to investment in the entertainment sector. 

Expressing his happiness on the occasion, Founder President of IBC, Sir Sohan Roy stated “I feel extremely happy to be back in Bangalore to host our 2nd edition of Indywood Business Awards – Karnataka Edition. The club has been getting great response and we have now opened up our chapters in Hyderabad, Kerala, Dubai, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. India is a economic powerhouse but numerous drain holes in the system are not allowing it to reach its full potential. Through this club we aim to plug those drain holes and bring together the entire Indian billionaire community under one roof to achieve the vision of a developed India by 2030. Entertainment is a ‘Sunrise Industry’ and I am sure, that investments in this sector will lead to further the monetary returns and render gain to the economy in total.”

Dr Sohan Roy

Proud award winners included Rockline Venkatesh (Owner-Rockline Entertainments), US Mahendar (CEO & Director -Hatti Food And Beverages Pvt.Ltd.), Jayakar Rao (CEO -Emount Solutions), Jose Jacob Kalayil (Founder & CEO, Integro Infotech & Consulting), Parimala Jaggesh (Founder & Director AlaMiraP Nutrition), Mansoor Ahamed (Attiitude Fashion Pvt.Ltd.), Santosh Huralikoppi (CEO & Chief Mentor -NS Infotech Ltd & Fuel (Friends Union for Energizing Lives). Subhakar Rao(Founder Chairman -Champions Group),Kamar .D (Owner-Kamar Film Factory),G J Jayakumar(G J Jayakumar(Director-Garuda Group),Santhosh PK (Owner-Sai Construction & Sea Breeze Sailing Boat Restaurant),Dhruva Kumar HP (Director-Wedding Mansion Co.), Aadarsh Sivaraman (Director-Saateram Alternative Fuel and Energy Private Limited(SAAFE), CK Kumaravel (CEO& Co-Founder -Naturals Salon), TS Venkatesh(Managing Director -Megha Travels), Dr SP Dayanand (Executive Director-DS-Max Properties Pvt. Ltd),Naveen Kumar (Chief People Officer -Veda Green Ventures Pvt. Ltd)Basavaraj DR (Managing Director-Mars Elevators),Ghanshyam Ghorpade (National Head Events Spykke),Venkatesh Chinnaswamy (Proprietor-Modern Agencies),Yogesh HN (Managing Director-Pragati Group of Companies), Divya Rangenahalli (Managing Director - Media Connect), Shekhar S (Managing Director - Sahara Labels Private Ltd), and G J Jaya Kumar (Director - Garuda group).

The event was sponsored by Wolf Air Mask (Official Covid 19 solution), Last drop (Official Fashion partner), Manikya Spirits & Breweries Pvt. Ltd (Official Beverage Partner), Key Media (Official Event Partner), Univerciti (Official healthcare partner), Cliniqally (Official Healthcare partner) Aries Home plex (Official Home Entertainment partner), Aries Plex (Official Multiplex partner) Indy wood TV (Official Channel partner) AIMRI (Official Knowledge Partner).

The event is supported by Project Indywood, Invest in India and Aries Group of Companies. The event also witnessed an exciting fashion show in association with Last Drop Fashion Week showcasing the latest designs and trends from the hands of the ace designers – Chaitanya Rao, Wreckie Angrish and Hari Anand

For more information please visit: https://www.indywoodbillionairesclub.com/

Meet the 21-Yr-Old Entrepreneur's Kwige Investments Providing Investments To Early Stage Startups

Sanjiv Kumar, 21 years old young entrepreneur who is now trying to help other entrepreneurs of India in bringing innovative & creative startups from ideation to the market by providing proper guidance, support and pre-seed & seed funding for their initial pick up.

In past, Sanjiv Kumar has worked on his startup ideas few of them were The Luxury eats, Ruffka & Runzze but due to the lack of funds, he couldn't able to handle the expenses alone and had to shut them down. He noticed that the people had great ideas & built blueprints of their businesses, all they lacked were funds. From there, he founded Kwige investments to help young, motivated startup founders in raising their pre-seed and seed round of funding.

Sanjiv kumar

Today the (www.kwige.in) Kwige Investments which now receives over 100’s investment requests per day from start-ups filters out the best unique opportunities and present them to the client investors. Kwige organizes a meeting for the investor and the startup team if the investor is really interested.

You only need money for expansion not for the invention
- Sanjivshen

Sanjiv invests in early-stage startups that he finds innovative or bringing some impact on the economy. He also believes that if a person got an idea then he should work on it rather than just imagining & talking about it. He says today people are more aware of how private investments are done due to the TV show called Shark Tank, Previously people only knew about bank loans and mortgages for which they had to pay high-interest rates.

Investment range: 50,000 to 500 million

Number of Startups Served: 250+

Personal Portfolio:

1. Metaphorsis (New Generation Digital marketing agency)
2. Zingie (Revolutionalized online food delivery)

Apply for startup funding at : www.kwige.in

doola Launches DAO LLC Offering and Announces Partnership with Syndicate to Bridge Web3 with Web2

doola launches DAO offering and partnership with Syndicate:

• doola helps global web2 and web3 entrepreneurs easily set up an LLC, C Corp, or DAO LLC in the U.S. (Wyoming, Delaware, and all other states) with support including EIN, U.S. address, U.S. bank account, payment gateway, and ongoing state compliance and IRS tax filings.
• Syndicate is building web3-native infrastructure and tools to create and manage investing DAOs. Syndicate’s first product is Web3 Investment Clubs, which allows anyone to create and run an investment club on Ethereum.

 doola announced today that they have launched full support for forming DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization) LLCs in the U.S., including Wyoming, Delaware, and all other U.S. states. Founders globally can now register a DAO LLC through doola remotely, without visiting the U.S. doola also announced a partnership with Syndicate to enable investing DAOs on Syndicate to get legal entities, open fiat bank accounts, submit state compliance filings, and issue K-1 tax forms easily and affordably. This is a game-changer—and it’s just the beginning of deeper integrations and capabilities that they’ll be bringing to businesses on doola and DAOs on Syndicate together.

A DAO is a digitally-native mechanism for coordination. At a fundamental level, you can think of DAOs as internet-native constitutions. But unlike regular constitutions, DAOs run as code enabled by smart contracts, hard-coded rules that are then deployed on blockchain networks like Ethereum. These smart contracts allow a DAO to run “autonomously” without necessarily relying on individual human decision-makers in the organization. This decentralization easily allows online communities to form and coordinate economically. On July 1st, 2021, Wyoming became the first U.S. state to legally recognize DAOs and grant them the same rights as limited liability companies. Many DAOs are now forming in Wyoming and other U.S. states like Delaware.

“Within the next decade, investing will be decentralized, democratized, and community-driven. Syndicate is building web3-native infrastructure that will empower communities to raise, coordinate, and invest capital like never before. However, many investing DAOs need a way to easily create a legal entity, get a U.S. bank account, and manage ongoing state compliance and tax filings. We’re excited to partner with doola so DAOs on Syndicate can do what they love and are best at, investing, while doola handles the rest,” said Ian Lee, Co-Founder of Syndicate.

Arjun Mahadevan, CEO of doola, said, “Legal legislation enabling the creation of LLCs and C Corporations radically increased the scale at which humans were able to cooperate as well as the amount of capital that organizations could then raise and deploy. DAOs are a digital-first mechanism for coordination and the next step in this evolution. Together, we are bridging Web3 to Web2 by providing the ‘real-world’ tooling DAOs need, including limited liability protection, fiat banking, tax filings, and more.”

About doola

doola helps global entrepreneurs form U.S. LLCs, C Corps, and DAO LLCs by supporting customers through the incorporation process so they can confidently collect payments, build credibility, stay legal, and make more money. doola provides company formation, an EIN, a U.S. address and bank account, access to U.S. payments, tax consultations, U.S. tax support, $50,000 in startup perks, and more. Today, hundreds of companies have launched with doola, and these founders didn’t need a U.S. social security number to benefit from doola’s products and services. doola was founded in late 2020 by Arjun Mahadevan and JP Pincheira, with its H.Q. in New York City. Learn more at www.doola.com and on Twitter at @doolaHQ.

About Syndicate

Syndicate is radically transforming investing through accessible, effortless, and social web3 technologies. Syndicate is building decentralized investing and social networking protocols, advanced legal tech solutions, and a next-gen social networking platform that empowers communities to raise, coordinate, and invest capital like never before. Syndicate was founded in early 2021 and is backed by over 300+ founders, operators, investors, and communities in web3 and web2. Learn more at www.syndicate.io and on Twitter @SyndicateDAO.

Recruiteen Emerges as Winner of the Grand Finale of Tie Young Entrepreneurs (TYE) 2021

The Grand Finale of TiE Young Entrepreneurs(TYE) 2021 held

Recruiteen team wins the competition

The Grand Finale of TiE Young Entrepreneurs 2021 held virtually on Sunday evening.

Recruiteen team emerged as the winner of the competition. Their business plan, a platform that allows primarily senior citizens in a need or desire to learn new skills or improve them with a teacher as adjudged as the best pitch by the jury who comprised of Sarada Jayakrishnan, DGM, Terumo Penpol Pvt Ltd; Isaac Raajlunar, MD of India Senior VP Engineering at Open Text and Sreedevi Devi Reddy, VP Startup Ecosystem, xelpmoc design & tech.

The team comprises of Pradhyumn Varma, The Future Kids School; Aashi Agarwal, Chirec; Zeanne Maria Martins, Potdar Intl School; Charvi Toklas, Bharathiya Vidya Bhavan ARR School and Atharv Tapadia, Future Kids School. It was mentored by Dr Balaji Bhyravbhatla.

 

Charvi, Pradhyumn, Zeanne, Aashi Agarwal, Atharv Tapadia of Recruiteen the B-Plan Competition Winners of TiE Young Entrepreneurs 2021 Virtual Grand Finale

ProTeens team for their Business Plan got runner up prize.

ProTeens bagged Best Elevator Pitch Prize.

Four teams—Alohadrones; FarmersConnect; ProTeens and RecruiTeens shortlisted for the grand final and competed for the top honours.

Team Recruiteen B-Plan Competetion Winners

 
Each of the teams was given one-minute elevator pitch and ten minutes video presentation followed by jury question and answers sessions.

The parameters used to select winners include Business problem and strength of solution; Customer surveys and solution validation; Execution, Demonstration and Iterations; Business Plan and Financial Acumen; Team words, Coordination, presentation and question and answers handling and preparedness to answer questions.

TYE (TiE Young entrepreneurs) is a TiE Global initiative dedicated to chapters integrating classroom sessions, mentoring and business plan competition aimed at High School students (grades 9-12 or equivalent college students are allowed). TYE is designed to teach high school students entrepreneurship and leadership skills. The TYE program is designed for a 16 week period, which includes classroom instruction, design thinking workshops, mentoring support for business plan development, and culminates with business plan competition.

TiE Young Entrepreneurs 2021 was organised by TiE Hyderabad in partnership with EThames College of Business. Speaking of partnership Mr Kali Prasad G, Chairman of Ethames College of Business and Past President of TiE Hyderabad quoted the launch of ECombinator where students with business plans can get mentorship and support and student of TiE Young Entrepreneurs are directly benefitted.

Addressing the participants Mr Manohar Reddy, TiE Hyderabad Chapter President said, the quality of business plan ideas, pitches and participants confidence is increasing each passing year over the past 12 editions he said. Referring to the recently TiE Sustainability Summit, he told participants to keep watch on ‘Sustainability’, '17 SDGs(Sustainable Development Goals'), they are our future and opportunities.

The winners get eligibility to Participate in a similar global competition.

The TYE is aimed at fostering entrepreneurship among future generations. It is an endeavour to sow seeds of entrepreneurship at an early stage to be groomed as job creators rather than job seekers. It will also instil confidence to lead in a global environment.

India's 10 Most Inspiring Entrepreneurs in Last 25 Years

Time to time, business men and women have been an inspiration to young ones of their generations on how to start with small and make it big. Unlike America, India has not seen any Industrial revolution yet individuals in India in every decade have gone through their entrepreneurial journeys and ended up making global brands. To name a few, Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata pioneered India's industrial sector and build a brand that's now called Tata Group; Late Dhirubhai Ambani started with very small business of selling shells and oil products, and end up with making biz giant that's now called "Reliance Industries". 

People like these two inspired many in the country to start-up and how to work against all odds. We have jot down some of such individuals in last 25 years, who have been inspirations for entrepreneurs, even to date.

10. Ajit Balakrishnan

Ajit Balakrishnan is an Internet entrepreneur known for his venture Rediff.com, which he founded in 1995. Currently, he is the founder, Chairman and CEO of Rediff.com. Rediff.com was listed on NASDAQ in 2001 and now ranks among India's most successful Internet companies.

Once touted as "Google of India", Rediff.com India Ltd. provides internet based online services. The Company markets specific channels, community features, local language editions, search capabilities, and online shopping. Rediff.com serves customers throughout India.

Ajit Balakrishnan holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of Kerala and is an MBA from IIM Calcutta. He recently chaired a committee set up by the ministry of human resource development on education and entrepreneurship to provide inputs for the National Education Policy.

9. Sabeer Bhatia

Got famed by his venture Hotmail, Sabeer Bhatia became a poster-boy in 90s for inventing Hotmail, the first web-based e-mailing system. Sabeer emigrated to the US in the 1988 and co-founded Hotmail in 1996. Hotmail then eventually acquired by Microsoft in 1998 for an estimated $400 million.

Born in 1968 in the northern Indian city of Chandigarh, Sabeer studied at the California Institute of Technology transferring from the Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS. He then went on to obtain a masters in electrical engineering from Stanford University.

Sabeer briefly worked for Apple as a hardware engineer before moving to a Cannon subsidiary FirePower Systems Inc. He was stumble upon by the fact that software was accessible on the internet via a browser, which birthed the idea of email in the browser.

Sabeer worked at Microsoft for one year after the Hotmail acquisition and then in April 1999 he left Microsoft, and founded an e-commerce firm, Arzoo Inc, before starting a free messaging service called JaxtrSMS.

8. Ajim Premji

In 1966, Azim Premji, who was mere 21-year-old, took over his father's legacy, which was called Western Indian Vegetable Products, and later diversified the company that was making soaps, lighting products, baby products etc, until 1980s when he again diversified the company into computer manufacturer and then also entered into IT softwares along with changing the name of the company to Wipro, which is now among India's top-5 IT firms.

A Stanford alumnus, PremJi has been listed among the 100 most influential people by Time magazine, two times,  in 2004 and then in 2011. With an estimated net worth of US $32.8 billion, PremJi is one of the richest people in India.

7. Shiv Nadar

Image ~ vijaykanna1.blogspot.com

The 3rd richest person in India, Shiv Nadar founded HCL in the 1976. HCL is now a $9.9 billion (revenue) company and India's third-largest software services provider by market cap. HCL entered into the software services business in 1991. In May 2019, HCL was among the top 20 largest publicly traded companies in India with a market capitalization of $21.5 billion.

Shiv Nadar holds a degree in Electrical & Electronics Engineering from PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore. 

Prior to starting HCL, Nadar and his partners had venture called Microcomp, a company which focused on selling tele-digital calculators in the Indian market.

6. Sanjeev Bikhchandani

Image - Outlook [Photo by Vishal Koul]

Arguably the first successful dot-com entrepreneur in India, Sanjeev Bikhchandani introduced series of hit dot-com websites in late 90s including job portal 'Naukri.com', real estate portal '99Acres.com' and matrimonial website 'Jeevansathi.com'. These websites are still running successfully across the country.

Known as India's Internet pioneer, Sanjeev founded the company Info Edge in 1995 and the company has invested in many young tech startups including unicorns such as Zomato, PolicyBazaar and many other young startups. He later also launched educational portal Siksha.com.

In 2006,  Info Edge became India’s first dot-com company to get listed on the Bombay & National Stock Exchanges -- BSE & NSE.

5. Vijay Shekhar Sharma

Image - Financial Express

Founder and CEO of Paytm, Vijay Shekhar Sharma, has been featured in Time Magazines World's 100 Most Influential People in 2017 list. It was in year 2000 when he launched One97 Communications, which is now PayTM's parent company. With One97, Vijay used to offer mobile content including news, cricket scores, ringtones, jokes and exam results.

Not many aware that even before One97/PayTM, Vijay's earliest venture was IndiaSite.net, which he started with college friend Harinder Takhar (now CEO of PayTM Labs) in 1997. Two years later, US-based Lotus Interworks bought Indiasite.net reportedly for $1 million.

Vijay, who is an engineering graduate from Delhi Technological University (DTU), is deeply inspired by software stars like US entrepreneur Marc Andreessen and Yahoo co-founder Jerry Yang.

4. Sridhar Vembu

Sridhar Vembu [Image - fridaymagazine.ae]

Founder & CEO of Zoho Corporation, Sridhar is recipient of India's fourth highest civilian award, the Padma Shri, which he got awarded this year.  Born in a Tamil family of farmers from a village in Thanjavur district, Tamil Nadu, Sridhar started his professional career working for Qualcomm as a wireless engineer in San Diego, California, before moving to the San Francisco Bay Area. 

Sridhar, who is an alumnus of  IIT-Madras in Electrical Engineering (1989 batch), started a company AdventNet in 1996, which was eventually renamed to Zoho Corporation in 2009, focusing on providing SaaS support to customer relationship management services.  

3. Sandeep Bansal

Best known as the co-founder of India's home-grown e-commerce giant, Flipkart, Sachin Bansal becomes a poster boy for budding entrepreneurs in the country. Sachin, along with his co-founder Binny Bansal took Flipkart to its peak by capturing the dominant position with 39.5% market share in Indian e-commerce industry, in 2017.

In 2018, Flipkart valuation reached to $20.8 billion. In the same year, Flipkart was acquired by Walmart (77% stake) for $16 billion. 

Sachin, who is an computer engineering graduate from IIT Delhi, become a poster boy inspiring many upcoming entrepreneurs in 2010s.

2. N R Narayana Murthy

Co-founder of Infosys, Narayana Murthy has been described as father of the Indian IT sector by Time magazine and CNBC. He has been listed among the 12 "greatest entrepreneurs of our time" by Fortune magazine, along with Apple's late chief Steve Jobs, Microsoft founder Bill Gates and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

An alumnus of IIT-Kanpur and IIM- Ahmedabad, Narayaa Murthy leaded Infosys since its establishment in 1981 up to year 2014. 

In 1999, Infosys became the first Indian company to be listed on Nasdaq, the American stock exchange. Recently, this year Infosys became the 4th Indian company to cross $100 billion in market capitalization.

In 2006, Narayana Murthy retired as CEO of Infosys and now consults and acts as a mentor to young Indian entrepreneurs & startups.

1. Dhirubhai Ambani

One of the early entrepreneurs of 20th century India, Late Dhirajlal Hirachand Ambani, popularly known as Dhirubhai Ambani was a successful Indian business tycoon who founded Reliance Industries, one of the most diversified business conglomerate and the largest publicly traded company in India, by market capitalisation. Reliance is the largest company in India as measured by revenue after recently surpassing the government-owned Indian Oil Corporation.

In 1966, he formed Reliance Commercial Corporation which later became Reliance Industries on 8 May 1973. He also launched the popular clothing brand 'Vimal' during this time.

Late Dhirubhai Ambani was featured among Power 50-the most powerful people in Asia thrice, by Asiaweek magazine, in years -  1996, 1998 and 2000.

Tribal Artisans Turn Entrepreneurs Thanks To TEDP Initiative

Painting By Divya chandra

The joint enterprise by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) and national industry body, ASSOCHAM, the Tribal Development Entrepreneurship Program has helped artisans from the remotest parts of the country to generate a decent income.

New Delhi, 30th July, 2021: The COVID imposed lockdown of 2020 had cast a gloomy scenario globally. People grappled with job loss and stared at an uncertain future. But some artisans like Himjyoti Morang of Assam used this as an opportunity to grow. Trained under the Tribal Entrepreneurship Development Program of MoTA, these artists cum farmers are now tech-savvy businessmen and earn a handsome income to support their families.

Morang (31), is from the Dolaghat district of Assam. She is a weaver and makes traditional tribal outfits like Mekhela, Gamosa (gamcha), Daluk (jacket), mufflers, etc. “The men in our community do farming while women make clothes in our tribe,” says Morang. Till the lockdown of last year, Morang earned around Rs 5000 per month from the sale of her clothes.

Himjyoti Morang

"Though there is demand for these garments, I would get orders through word-of-mouth only,” she says. Financially, things were difficult for her family whose only means of survival were their farm produce. However, her selection in the Tribal Development Entrepreneurship Program (TEDP) of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) in May 2021, changed things forever. TEDP is a joint initiative of MoTA and the national industry body ASSOCHAM. It trains tribal artisans across the country to upgrade their skills and imparts digital marketing knowledge.

“I learned to make my Facebook Business page and posted two pictures of the mufflers I made. Within two days I got a bulk order for 30 mufflers,” she says excitedly. From Rs 5000 a month, Morang has seen her income double up to Rs 10,000. “I can now manage my business from home easily and educate my two daughters as well,” she says.

Similarly, Rudan Devi (50), a Sohrai artist from Jharkhand got more work after she was trained under the TEDP this February. To date,Rudan had only made Sohrai murals and had never held a paintbrush in her life. “Under the workshop, we learned to paint on paper and cloth. It was a novel experience,” she says.

Sohrai paintings of Jharkhand are associated with the harvest season and are made by tribal women on mud walls of their huts. They use natural earth colors – white (kaolin), black (manganese), yellow and red ochre. It has also received geotag from the Indian government in 2020.

After the workshop,Rudan got some orders to make paintings on paper. “Earlier we would paint murals. Now we have more products to offer the customers as we can paint on paper as well,” she says. Her monthly income which was earlier dependent on occasional murals is now around Rs 20,000/- per month. “Apart from murals, there is always some painting work to do and earn more money,” she adds.

The skills learned by these artisans under TEDP have made them hopeful of brighter prospects. For instance, Malini MG, 39, a bamboo artist from Wayanad, Kerala now has more variety to offer her customers. “Previously I made eco-friendly bamboo spoons and spatulas and sell them at government-held exhibitions,” she says.This limited range of products restricted her market reach. She would earn anywhere Rs 5000 per month depending upon the exhibitions.

But TEDP came to her rescue this summer where she got to learn additional skills. “I learned to make bamboo pen-stands, egg-holders, dream catchers, etc., in the workshop. Now I have more range of daily use products and I am hopeful to get more customers,” she points out.

Similarly, the digital marketing workshop held under TEDP has fired up the ambition of Chhattisgarh artisans as well. The global reach of online marketing has made them dream of a better tomorrow. “We learned how to tap an online platform to promote our work and benefit from it,” says Suresh Kumbhakar, 30, a sculptor from Chhattisgarh.

Though everything was closed during the lockdown, TEDP held online workshops to teach these artisans digital marketing skills. The artists learned to create their Facebook business page and upload their artwork. “Since lockdown restricted our movement, we learned to use the online platform to reach the customers,” he reveals.

The workshop has turned these artists hopeful of catering to a bigger market for which they are now in the process of forming a group. “We did not upload our artwork wondering what if we get bulk orders. Hence, we are forming a group so that we can deal with the flood of online orders once our work is promoted online,” says Divya Chandra, 23 a painter and sculptor from Korba district of Chhattisgarh.

Divya chandra

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs and ASSOCHAM aims to train more than 1000 artisans over a span of three years under the TEDP program as a part of the ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative of the government of India.

GlobalShala Announces the Winners of "Superhero U" An Innovative Social Entrepreneurship Competition for Young Students

Contest inspired by UN Sustainable Development Goals for 2030

Broad participation from Asia, Africa, the United States, and the Middle East

Awarded scholarships, trips, and prizes worth $90,000

Anushika Jain, Founder & CEO, GlobalShala

GlobalShala, an EdTech venture that offers affordable experiential learning opportunities worldwide, has announced the winners of its multinational “Superhero U” competition, design in partnership with Northeastern University, USA, to inspire student’s inventiveness and intensify their imagination to envision how to make the world a better place.

Pre-college and college students were asked to invent a “superhero” capable of tackling one of the global social challenges outlined in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030 Link: https://sdgs.un.org/. Individuals and groups employed descriptions, drawings, illustrations, animations, and multimedia presentations to bring their creations to life. Five key SDG themes emerged: peace, prosperity, people, planet, and partnerships. The superheroes were designed to cultivate a force of forward-thinking and social entrepreneurship.

More than 1,400 entries were submitted by students from 88 regions and countries, including India, the United States, Nigeria, Iran, and Africa, among others. Candidates received one-on-one mentorship and support to guide them through any odds or challenges from the industry experts, special guest advisors, and judges on-board during the evaluation process.

The winners of the contest were selected from 87 finalists and announced in a global webinar.

The winners of the Superhero U contest were Carolina Carvalho from Brazil under the College Category (Superhero Name – Concienza Women) and Joey Sparks & Team from US under the High School Category (Superhero Name – Earthanater). 

The winners received a full paid trip to New York with a potential visit to the UN Headquarters and, to add to the excitement, they were awarded $10,000 worth of scholarships and the opportunity to bring their Superhero to life, along with custom-made Superhero U merchandise, badges, virtual internship, and $200 gift cards.

Additional prizes were awarded in the special mention and high commendation categories. Winners in the special mention category were guaranteed scholarships worth up to $2,500 along with Superhero U merchandise and badges, along with guaranteed virtual internship opportunities. High commendation category winners were awarded a scholarship worth $5,000, merchandise, badges, a virtual internship, and $100 gift cards.

Anushika Jain, Founder & CEO, GlobalShala said,

Both the winners thought behind the building of their respective Superhero evolved around abuse from the power to the powerless. The deep philosophy and thought, enlighten us on how our youth envision themselves working towards a greater cause in their way of life forward and meet the unmet needs, and bridge the social need gap. The larger mission behind the Superhero U contest was to create an experiential education system that empowers the youth and the educators to build their dream with the help of lifelong learning. With the power of express, explore, experience, and engage, GlobalShala steps towards creating a sustainable global learning ecosystem with the mission to support the future change-makers.

The judges of this competition extended gratitude to all the participants for having the awareness and the empathy to recognize the larger problem that our society is living in and envisioning a futuristic yet realistic and enforceable approach to work on resolving the larger social issue. According to them, the work presented shows the willingness to inspire the youth, and the current generation can be a strong motivation for the participants to continue thinking inspirationally and out of the box. For a better world, it's important for young students to continue staying focused to address the problem of sustainability and to gain valuable experience and life skills.

The competition has been a 9-month, experiential learning journey for all the stakeholders involved in making this “Superhero U” contest a huge success. This allowed all the participants to bring out their social entrepreneurship from within and catalyse their creative thinking and innovation to design and look at the world from the eyes of the vulnerable to solve a global problem with their superhero.

GlobalShala hopes to continue aspiring the youth across the world to create their Superhero and aim towards transforming these creative ideas into action plans for global development and inspire change in the way we view the problems around us.

About GlobalShala:

GlobalShala is an experiential learning platform equipping students and educators with 21st-century skills through lifelong learning opportunities in addition to sustainable competitions and virtual internships designed by world-class universities.

Link: https://globalshala.com/

Henley & Partners: Entrepreneurs Opt for Domicile Diversification in Covid-19 Era

Image - Henleyglobal.com

LONDON, March 9, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The significant global volatility driven by Covid-19 has led to a spike in affluent entrepreneurs and international investors building geographically diversified domicile portfolios through residence- and citizenship-by-investment in a bid to overcome the limitations and risks of being restricted to a single residence.

In the past eight months, Henley & Partners has seen a 32% increase in the daily average number of enquiries compared to the first six months of 2020. The shifts in the predominant nationalities who are interested in investment migration are eye opening — with the most astonishing being a 192% leap in enquiries from US citizens in 2020 compared to the previous year. Enquiries from Canadians are up 34%, and there have been 29% and 26% more enquiries from UK and French nationals, respectively.

Dr. Juerg Steffen, CEO of Henley & Partners, says ultra-high-net-worth individuals from the world's most advanced economies are opting for an integrated investment migration portfolio of complementary citizenship and residence options to create optimal value and mitigate risk in terms of where they and their families can live, work, study, and invest. "It's a classic case of not putting all your eggs in one basket. The majority of program options include the whole family, and many extend to parents and even to grandparents and siblings. The more jurisdictions you can access, the more diversified your assets and opportunities, and the lower your exposure to country-specific risks such as poor health security, increased tax rates or unexpected policy changes."

The growing interest in securing a suite of domicile options to improve the resilience of portfolios and ensure physical and financial longevity and legacy in the wake of the pandemic is a world-wide phenomenon, according to Dominic Volek, Group Head of Private Clients at Henley & Partners. "This is about taking a truly global perspective, and the best way to do that is to have a diversified portfolio — a range of locations where you, your family and extended family, and your assets can be based, giving you alternative business, career, educational, healthcare, and lifestyle opportunities on a worldwide scale."

"There are many options that cater for large, multi-generational families who don't necessarily want or need to be in the same location. For example, a successful tech entrepreneur could apply for Australia's Global Talent Independent Visa to obtain permanent residence there. The children have their sights set on studying in Europe or the UK, so they also apply for the UK Investor Immigration Program or the Portugal Golden Residence Permit Program. The retired parents, on the other hand, would prefer to spend time in Thailand, so they could apply for the Thailand Elite Residence Program, which has an option that includes multiple dependents. Covid-19 has reminded us that we need to take a long-term strategic approach, not make a mad dash to the emergency exit when things go wrong in our current place of residence."

Media Contact:
Paddy Blewer
Head of Communications
paddy.blewer@henleyglobal.com