GANGTOK: The North East AI and Digi-SAPNE 2.0 (Startup Acceleration Program for North East) celebrated a successful Demo Day at AIC-SMUTBI on Friday, marking the end of a rigorous six-month acceleration period for 12 innovative startups from all eight states of the North East region. This initiative, backed by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), aims to cultivate and empower emerging businesses by providing essential resources, mentorship, and investment support, thereby fostering entrepreneurship-led economic growth in the area.
This year, the program garnered an impressive 402 applications, leading to the selection of 12 startups with significant potential. Collectively, these startups reported total revenues of Rs 7.98 crores in the last financial quarter while attracting Rs 5.25 crores in external investments from venture capitalists and angel investors during the same timeframe. Throughout the program, 28 mentors from various sectors dedicated over 1,000 hours to mentorship, while discussions on potential investments were initiated with more than 14 agencies, including venture capital firms and family offices.
As part of their preparation for the Demo Day, the participants attended a focused Bootcamp on September 18, supported by the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI). This event included workshops on financial literacy and business strategies helmed by experts like Dwijijadas Chatterjee and Gulshan Purswani. Additionally, Suman Sekhar from SIDBI presented funding options available to early-stage ventures.
On the Demo Day, which took place on September 19, startups showcased their business models and growth plans to the Investment Committee of AIC-SMUTBI. The committee, advised by the Ministry, featured government representatives, industry experts, and academics. After a thorough evaluation, 10 startups were chosen to receive grant investments of Rs 10 lakh each-eight under the Digi-SAPNE scheme and two under the Startup India Seed Fund (SISF).
The startups awarded the Digi-SAPNE grants include Respirit Healthcare (Assam), Recycle Bazaar (Meghalaya), Sutsung Enterprise (Nagaland), Green Biotech Ecolsolutions (Manipur), Cubo Bots (Tripura), Infinite Swasthya (Assam), Eigthsis Technologies (Mizoram), and Acuvea Healthcare Technologies (Tripura). The SISF grants went to Arunachal Ivory & Ornaments (Arunachal Pradesh) and Spaced Revision (Sikkim).
During the event, Dr. G.K. Prabhu, Vice-Chancellor of SMU and Chairman of AIC-SMUTBI, reaffirmed their commitment to establishing a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem in the North-East. He expressed confidence that programs like Digi-SAPNE 2.0 will inspire and empower a new generation of entrepreneurs. Guest of honour Tenzing Kaleon, Secretary of the IT Department, Government of Sikkim, encouraged participants to boldly pursue innovative ventures, highlighting the increased government support available for such initiatives.
The event underscored the Government of India’s commitment to strengthening the entrepreneurial landscape and creating sustainable economic opportunities in the North-East, supported by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
Original Source: https://www.sikkimexpress.com/news-details/ten-ne-startups-receive-grants-under-digi-sapne-and-sisf
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