The Madhya Pradesh leg of the Government of India’s Startup India Yatra, held in collaboration with Startup Madhya Pradesh, was launched on 17^th of July 2018. The Yatra witnessed the presence of more than 5,000 participants with 427 startups pitching their ideas, of which 136 startups were selected for the Grand Finale held today at Sri Govindram Seksaria Institute of Technology and Science in Indore.  The candidates selected for the Grand Finale had been a part of an accelerator programme to train them for finale pitches, and at today’s event, 7 incubators made 110 incubation offers to 71 startups. Cash prizes of ₹ 10 Lakh were awarded to 16 aspiring entrepreneurs ranging between ₹ 25,000 and ₹ 75,000.

A Startup India Yatra van, equipped with facilities, for individuals and startups to pitch their ideas, travelled to 13 cities of Madhya Pradesh starting from Bhopal, to spread awareness about Startup India and Madhya Pradesh Startup Policy. A day-long boot camp in 8 cities, which included presentations on startup policies followed by an extensive ideation workshops, were also held.

The vehicle, with experts on board, provided an opportunity for entrepreneurial talents to pitch an idea and get incubated, scaling it from idea to enterprise. The van travelled to 25 colleges. The yatra  began on July 17^th, 2018 and covered 10 districts and 15 institutions in a span of 30 days.  

“Startup India Yatra” aims to scout grass root level entrepreneurs in the Tier 2 and Tier 3 towns of India, providing a platform for budding entrepreneurs to realize their startup dream, by getting incubated at top grade institutions and taking their idea to the next level.

 

Startup incubation: mobile outreach and accelerator training translated grassroots pitches into institutional incubation offers across the state. A state-level Startup India outreach combined a mobile pitch van, regional boot camps and an accelerator to promote the Madhya Pradesh Startup Policy, select grassroots entrepreneurs from Tier 2 and Tier 3 locations, and translate shortlisted pitches into institutional incubation through offers from incubators and capacity-building interventions.