On January 16, 2023, AIC-SMUTBI, Sikkim celebrated National Start-up Day at a local hotelhere Gangtok in collaboration with Start-up Indiaand Office of the Principal Scientific Advisor to Government of India, as their initiative of Innovation Week 2023.
Start-ups are the backbone of the ‘New India’ and Hon’ble Prime Minister of India announced 16 January as the founding day of National Start-up Day, to celebrate the spirit of entrepreneurship across the country.
AIC-SMUTBI witnessed the gathering of entrepreneurs in hybrid mode with a total of 38 in person and 23 online Startup Founders onNational Start-up Day. CEO, AIC SMUTBI, Prof (Dr.) Tej Chingtham welcomed all the Start-up Founders to the event where he praised the entrepreneurs on making a difference and contributing to the society and world as a whole.
A keynote session on “Leveraging Innovations through the Manthan Platform” was conducted by Soumanil Mukherjee, Office of the PrincipalScientific Adviser to Government of India; which was set up in 1999, under the leadership of our former President of India, Late Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam. He gave an introduction to Manthan web-app which is based on the 4 pillars: 1. Opportunity creation and early-stage invasion 2. Defining people and proposal 3. Exhibition by partners 4. Webinar conference. He also highlighted various opportunities that can be leveraged by Start-upFounders through Manthan.
AIC-SMUTBI conducted Start-up Founders Hustle where the founders expressed their hardships and achievements during their journey.Founders also expressed their aspiration to connect with start-up ecosystem and provide a platform where all innovative minds can share their stories and experiences. They also highlighted points on how CSR funds can be leveraged for the benefit of the country through Start-ups.
Start-up Founders talked about various sectors like tourism, education technology intervention etc and pointed out the immense opportunities in Sikkim and in the North East of India.
The event concluded with an end note that to build a successful venture one should “Fall in love with the customer’s needs, and not the idea else it will end up becoming a research rather than an entreprise.”