Sempora: Jammu and Kashmir Entrepreneurship Development Institute (JKEDI) in collaboration with T-Hub Hyderabad on Tuesday brought together the startups, innovators and incubators from Kashmir valley to discuss different facets of the J&K Startup Policy 2024-27, for its effective implementation.
The interaction aimed at understanding the concerns of different stakeholders discussed the J&K Startup Policy 2024-27 threadbare. Director JKEDI, Rajinder Kumar Sharma (JKAS), briefed the participants about the J&K Startup Policy and its operational guidelines. He sought feedback from the participants so that the necessary changes wherever required are incorporated for successful implementation of the much-awaited policy.
“Your feedback matters as you are the primary stakeholders. As a nodal agency JKEDI has a responsibility to make the policy fully relatable to all. Be it Kashmir University, NIT Srinagar, IIT Jammu, Islamic University of Science and Technology, Jammu University or other related institutions, we all have to work as a team and achieve the goal,” Director JKEDI told the participants.
Besides startups, the event was attended by Dr. Parvez Ahmad Mir, Director CIED, IUST, Shahid Ansari, Founder and Chief Editor of Startup Kashmir Magazine, and Shahid Mir, from NIT Srinagar, CEO- iTBI Greenovator Incubation Foundation NIT Srinagar. The participant startups, innovators and incubators shared their innovations, entrepreneurship and startup culture in the region.
The collaboration between JKEDI and T-Hub marks a significant milestone in fostering the growth and development of startups, innovators, and incubators. One of the key objectives of the event was to provide a conducive environment for startups and incubators to come up with appropriate suggestions regarding startup culture in J&K.
Speaking on the occasion, Akshita Kanthala, Head of Government Programs, T-Hub, Hyderabad resonated the aim of T-Hub to create a futuristic startup ecosystem essential for the scalability of the startups of Jammu and Kashmir. Based on the visioning exercises, she interacted with the participants and gave vital feedback regarding various queries put forth by the participants.
Replying to a query by Muheet Mehraj, CEO of Kashmir Box about the intellectual capital for J&K Startups, Akshita replied that T-Hub has 200 plus mentors who are mostly pro-bono and are majorly Start-up India, Atal Incubation Centre and other allied government mentors; and the same model can be applied here in Kashmir valley as well.
Aftab Shalla, in-charge Government sponsored Schemes at Jammu and Kashmir Bank pressed for the need to make JKEDI a one-stop destination for aspiring startups so that the codal formalities for registration etc can be taken care of from a single point, to which Director JKEDI, Rajinder Kumar Sharma made it clear that JKEDI has been actively engaged in the providing assistance in every form to the aspiring startups and will continue the same as per the Startup Policy 2024-27.
The event received an overwhelming response from attendees, who lauded the efforts of both organizations in fostering a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship. The participants expressed enthusiasm for future collaborations and opportunities to further contribute to the startup ecosystem of J&K. The participants unanimously urged the government to speed up the implementation of the Startup Policy so that they are able to reap its benefits.
On the occasion, Shahid Ansari, Founder and Chief Editor of Startup Kashmir Magazine, and Shahid Mir, CEO of Greenovator Incubation Foundation, NIR Srinagar presented the inaugural issue of Startup Kashmir Magazine to Director JKEDI, Rajinder Kumar Sharma. The event was organized by CIIBM, a program vertical of JKEDI.
