An incubator for young minds and startups

“I got an idea of a business model and how to go about it only after I picked courses from the School of Management while studying for my B.Tech in Shiv Nadar (Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University). The case study discussions were of immense help. The multidisciplinary approach also helped me pick courses from economics which has helped me set up my business,” says Rakesh Munnanooru, Founder & CEO of WhistleDrive. The Enterprise Logistics solutions company serves over 75+ Enterprise Clients across the Globe.

Fuelled by innovation, entrepreneurial spirit, information and rapid changes in communications technology services, India has become a world leader in the startup ecosystem.

In the first five months of 2022 alone, 14 Indian startups became unicorns — the number was 13 last year in the same period. In the previous eight years, the number of startups has risen from 300 to 70,000, which is a massive 20,000 per cent increase. Now, globally out of every 10 unicorns, one is Indian.

The percolation of startups in India has also created a level playing field cutting across gender and demography. More than 50 per cent of startups in the country have started from tier 2 and 3 cities and nearly 47 percent of startups have women as their directors or CEO. India today has more than 70,000 startups recognized by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade.

According to the Economic Survey 2021-22, India has become the third-largest startup ecosystem in the world after the US and China. It wrested the third spot from the UK last year.

Raking in funds

After an outstanding 2021, with $42 Bn in startup funding and 1,583 deals, the growth momentum for the Indian startup ecosystem has been intact till the first quarter of 2022. Over 500 startup funding deals were recorded in Q1 2022, marking it the highest number of funding deals in the last few years on a YoY basis. Over $11.8 Bn was raised by Indian startups in this quarter, 186% higher than the funds raised in Q1 2021.

India is also one of the youngest nations with the third largest startup ecosystem in the world. Brimming with young minds, India also has the lowest median age of founder-entrepreneurs. Becoming an entrepreneur is not an easy task. Starting out requires more than just technical know-how. Most universities focus only on the latter and give a little insight into entrepreneurial or leadership skills. Start-up enthusiasts also face the problem of funding required for their projects.

The crucial role played by Shiv Nadar (Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University)-AIC  

Working this delicate balance, the Shiv Nadar (Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University) has emerged as a pioneer in helping students with training and financial aid in beginning their startups.

The university’s Atal Incubation Centre (AIC) established in 2017 with the support of AIM Niti Aayog has been helping students bridge the crucial gap.  Shiv Nadar IoE-AIC is also recognized by the Uttar Pradesh government under Start in UP offers grant support of Rs 2.47 crore, and Start-up India Seed Fund with grant support of Rs. 5 crore for a period of three years.

The university’s AIC has till date supported 55 startups till date of which two have crossed a valuation of Rs 1 crore. With six startups already incorporated by the Uttar Pradesh government, the university has offered over Rs 450 lakh funding to startups.

Shiv Nadar (Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University)-AIC synergies with its strong academic setup for research commercialisation. The university’s incubation centre has been recognised by Startup India Seed Fund with the grant support of Rs. 5 crore for a period of three years and by the Uttar Pradesh government under Start in UP with grant support of Rs 2.47 crore.

Why here?

The university’s School of Management and Entrepreneurship has devised a strategic intervention framework amalgamating quality management education, experiential learning, and technology called the Business Challenge Practicum (BCP).

The BCP project targets the real-world challenges of an organization where students gather inputs, analyze the data, evaluate solutions, and work on an implementation plan. In addition, this journey helps students train the required skills to set up and run their start-up.

Over the last three years, the university has evolved in crucial sectors in the startup ecosystem like Industry 4.0, AI & ML, AR & VR, robotics, drone, healthtech, edtech and agritech. Some of the university’s success stories include CallerDesk, Andromeida Maritime Solutions Pvt. Ltd., and Kwikbox.

“We work on research commercialization and support early-stage startups in the tech domain. We provide guidance, funds for ideas coming from students. The startups that come out of the university have the backing of the Atal Incubation Centre, Niti Aayog and Startup India seed fund grant. We also provide functional workspace for startups,” says Sheeba Khan, CEO, Atal Incubation Centre.

Besides the Atal Incubation Centre and the Business Challenge Practicum, Shiv Nadar University – Delhi NCR also offers a course called The Venture Lab (TVL) to Bachelor of Management Studies Students. As part of the ten-credit year-term experiential course, students are trained to set up and run a business. In addition, it allows the students to undergo an extensive and rigorous entrepreneurial experience and learn to set up and run a business venture from scratch. The objective of the course is to teach students to understand the concepts of implementation, organization, and teamwork.

Shiv Nadar (Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University), is one of the prime universities in India, where entrepreneurship resides at its heart. The university understands a student’s dream and works closely to make that dream become a reality.

Moneycontrol journalists were not involved in the creation of the article