Jharkhand gets its 1st Govt-Run Co-Working Facility; To Select 12 Startups

The first government-run co-working space was inaugurated at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Innovation Lab (ABVIL) in Kanke road in Ranchi, Yesterday.

With 24 workstations in total, this is the first such initiative to provide a workspace to the startups from all over Jharkhand in the state capital.

The facility will be made available for operations to 12 startups selected by ABVIL completely free of cost. 

Two workstations will be allotted to each startup as per their requirement and they can also exchange ideas and learn about marketing initiatives from the team at ABVIL at the same time.

ABVIL is an initiative by Government of Jharkhand in association with Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad to build a world-class innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem in the State. 

“The startups will be getting a token amount before the election season begins across the country. They have been promised a monthly stipend and they will be receiving the same the next week,” said Vinay Kumar Choubey, secretary of the department of information technology and e-governance of Jharkhand.

The startups selected for incubation by ABVIL are supposed to receive a monthly stipend of Rs 8,500 for each member for up to three members per startup and Rs 10,500 for women members. While 49 such startups have been selected till date, 20 have completed the documentation,” Umesh Prasad Sah, director of information technology in Jharkhand and interim CEO of ABVIL, said.

The community plug and play workspace will be a major step towards development of the concept of community offices in Jharkhand. “As of now, we are providing the space and services free of cost to the startups selected by ABVIL. When the building at for ABVIL Ratu Road is ready, we will also be renting out workstations in community workspaces so that more startups have a chance at accessing affordable workspaces in Jharkhand,” Sah said.

D K Singh, director of Dhanbad-based BIT, Sindri, also welcomed the startups whose ideas have been selected for incubation at ABVIL. “The doors of BIT Sindri is also open for the entrepreneurs who are based in or near Dhanbad as we are also offering our Institute premises for co-working space from April this year. They are welcome to use our resources free of cost to set up their startup ideas into functional business models,” Singh said.

The present entrepreneurs on the occasion also welcomed the move by the department. Hemlal Mahato, a Giridih-based farmer who has started an organic farming-based startup with his fellow villagers said, “Having a corporate presence in the state capital is very crucial to building a market for any startup. The decision to provide us an office space free cost is a huge relief, as we can now have our team members working from Ranchi."

The news above was first published in Times of India

Jharkhand Govt Allots ₹50 Crore VC Fund To Encourage Startups in the State

The Jharkhand Government has decided to sanction funds to encourage start up venture capital business in the state.
A decision in this regard was taken in the meeting of the state cabinet which was chaired by Chief Minister Raghubar Das at the project building here.

The state government has gone on setting up a venture capital fund with a corpus of Rs 50 crore in order to facilitate support to young and innovative entrepreneurs in the state. Three societies or companies would be formed under this to help the proposers coming under the scheme in the State.

An official release said that the cabinet had decided to set up funds for Jharkhand Start up Capital, Jharkhand Venture Capital Trustee Ltd and MSME Funds.

Also, an apex management body would be in place for which a firm ‘Gujarat Venture Fund Limited’ has been appointed.

Last month, Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII) has announced that it has implemented Start-up Village Entrepreneurship Programme (SVEP) in across 42 blocks across states of , Jharkhand, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh.

Jharkhand government had launched its Information Technology and Start-up Policy in April 2016. In the same year, Chhattisgarh also launched 'Start-up Chhattisgarh' initiative, along with a dedicated online portal, in Raipur to foster entrepreneurship and promote innovation. Under a slew of sops incorporated in the policy, the state govt had annuonced that starups would get a subsidy of 75% on term loans up to Rs 70 lakh for six years, fixed capital subsidy of 35-40% up to Rs 3.5 crore,

According to a PTI news in 2016, Jharkhand was also planning to set up Innovation and Incubation Centres in the state. This however, still remain in waiting buffer till date.

In May 2017, global technology giant Oracle had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government of Jharkhand to identify areas in which Oracle’s cloud-based technologies can be utilized to deliver improved citizen services. As a part of the MoU, Oracle will help the state government to improve its citizen services and attract IT startups to assist the state in improving its citizen services through e-governance.

In the same year, Jharkhand had also received investment support from the Union government for an internal venture capital fund to support startups in the state.

Via - Dailypioneer.com

Jharkhand Govt Allots ₹50 Crore VC Fund To Encourage Startups in the State

The Jharkhand Government has decided to sanction funds to encourage start up venture capital business in the state.
A decision in this regard was taken in the meeting of the state cabinet which was chaired by Chief Minister Raghubar Das at the project building here.

The state government has gone on setting up a venture capital fund with a corpus of Rs 50 crore in order to facilitate support to young and innovative entrepreneurs in the state. Three societies or companies would be formed under this to help the proposers coming under the scheme in the State.

An official release said that the cabinet had decided to set up funds for Jharkhand Start up Capital, Jharkhand Venture Capital Trustee Ltd and MSME Funds.

Also, an apex management body would be in place for which a firm ‘Gujarat Venture Fund Limited’ has been appointed.

Last month, Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII) has announced that it has implemented Start-up Village Entrepreneurship Programme (SVEP) in across 42 blocks across states of , Jharkhand, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh.

Jharkhand government had launched its Information Technology and Start-up Policy in April 2016. In the same year, Chhattisgarh also launched 'Start-up Chhattisgarh' initiative, along with a dedicated online portal, in Raipur to foster entrepreneurship and promote innovation. Under a slew of sops incorporated in the policy, the state govt had annuonced that starups would get a subsidy of 75% on term loans up to Rs 70 lakh for six years, fixed capital subsidy of 35-40% up to Rs 3.5 crore,

According to a PTI news in 2016, Jharkhand was also planning to set up Innovation and Incubation Centres in the state. This however, still remain in waiting buffer till date.

In May 2017, global technology giant Oracle had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government of Jharkhand to identify areas in which Oracle’s cloud-based technologies can be utilized to deliver improved citizen services. As a part of the MoU, Oracle will help the state government to improve its citizen services and attract IT startups to assist the state in improving its citizen services through e-governance.

In the same year, Jharkhand had also received investment support from the Union government for an internal venture capital fund to support startups in the state.

Via - Dailypioneer.com

Oracle To Encourage Jharkhand Startup Ecosystem

Global technology giant Oracle has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government of Jharkhand to identify areas in which Oracle’s cloud-based technologies can be utilized to deliver improved citizen services. As a part of the MoU, Oracle will help the state government to improve its citizen services and attract IT startups to assist the state in improving its citizen services through e-governance.

Raghubar Das, Chief Minister of Jharkhand said, "We want to be the top choice with global companies for investments and be India’s startup hub. Oracle’s rich global experience, technology expertise and strong capabilities, make them ideal partners for us."

Safra Catz, CEO, Oracle said, “Just as cloud is triggering broad innovation within the technology industry, it will also drive changes and increase efficiency within emerging economies like India.” He added, “India’s rapid transformation echoes the generational shift taking place in the technology industry."

“Oracle is looking forward to working with Jharkhand’s administration to support entrepreneurship, create opportunity, and improve services for its citizens, as we have done with governments around the world,” added Catz.

Under the MoU, Oracle and the Jharkhand government will work together to create proof of concepts and help new startups using Oracle cloud-based platforms to operationalize citizen services and startup centres. Oracle will offer support to the state through its enormous portfolio of technology solutions, including Oracle Cloud. These solutions cater to the rising requirements and expectations of citizens, businesses and government departments for smarter, transparent and efficient governance within the state of Jharkhand.

Earlier this year, Jharkhand has also received investment support from the Union government for an internal venture capital fund to support startups in the state.

Now, UP & Jharkhand Come Up With Startup Policy

On the pattern of Central government's Start-UP India campaign, the Uttar Pradesh government as well as the Jharkhand government have come up with an Information Technology and Start-up Policy 2016.

While Uttar Pradesh government has introduced IT and Start-up Policy 2016 which has already been approved by state cabinet and the Jharkhand government, on other side, has introduced "Start-Up Jharkhand", earmarking Rs 50 crore to encourage entrepreneurs in different sectors, Chief Minister Raghubar Das said on Monday. The startup policy for Jharkhand would be coming up soon he added.

Jharkhand would set up Innovation and Incubation Centres at a cost of Rs 10 crore and an innovation lab would also be set up with the help of IIM Ahmedabad.

Jharkhand CM said that entrepreneurs were being encouraged in the sectors like Information Technology, Health, Tourism, Agriculture, Biotechnology and alternative energy.

Uttar Pradesh, on other hand will get executed it startup policy by the Uttar Pradesh Electronics Corporation Limited which would remain effective for five years from the date of issuance of its notification.

Under this strategy, along with information technology related infrastructure and human resource and skill development, a focus would also be laid on giving attractive incentives and assistance to industries.

The Story Of Pakumania - A Law Student From Bilaspur Starting Up An E-Commerce Company

India is a land of diverse festivals and occasions wherein each and every one of us long for our fresh and mouth-watering homemade delicacies. As we move from one region to another, there are a variety of sweets (mithais) and namkeens that have us salivating and longing for more and more. How many times have we craved for 'Modaks' during Ganesh Puja, 'Bhakhar Wadi' or 'Ratlami Sev' but haven’t been able to find it in the cities we live in? I am sure it’s a big number.

Pakumania.com is a portal that allows you to order and devour these eateries from across the country and have them delivered to your homes or to the homes of your dear ones as gifts. They bring a variety of sweets and namkeens for you to choose from across the country including the famous pethas from Agra, the namkeens from Indore and many more. The name Pakumania is derived from Pakwaan.

Pakumania food services started in May 2013 but came up with their online portal in August 2013. Since then, they have been filling the hearts and stomachs of people with the local delicacies. "We have received a lot of appreciation from various people. And we received a lot of orders without spending a single rupee on marketing," says Vaibhav Shrivastava, the founder.



Vaibhav is a law student from Bilaspur, Chattisgarh who believed in doing something he was passionate about rather than working in his field of study. Passionate about entrepreneurship he started up Pakumania in Pune. “The idea came to me when I was stuck in Pune during Diwali and unable to visit my hometown because of approaching exams,” he says. “I missed the sweets and pakwaans my mom used to make every year. And there were many more like me,” he added.

Vaibhav started working on the concept/business model. "I did a trial run for 3 months offline by actually asking customers about the authentic pakwans they would like to eat from all across India," he says. After an online market survey of approximately 300 they tied up with vendors and courier agencies and started their services. They are currently delivering specialties form Maharashtra, Karnataka, Indore and Agra. Being a company which delivers semi perishable food products, logistics was a concern for them. They had to deliver the products fast. It took them 4 months to find the right service which now delivers within 24 hours of order.

"Our startup is doing really well because Indians love to eat pakwaans from their homeland. And we have specialty from every town and state," says one of the 3 members in the team. "Future generation doesn't have the time to prepare such things nor do we know how to do it," he adds.

They are currently not funded but plan to expand to countries outside India and have their manufacturing units in those countries. They will soon be launching products from Gujarat, Rajasthan, Kerala and Bihar. As a message for future entrepreneurs, Vaibhav says, "It's now or never. If you are willing to do something of your own just do it. The energy you have now is far more than you will have after 5 years or 10 years down the line when you are married or when you will have kids to take care of etc. So start now!"