CHENNAI: Chief Minister MK Stalin on Tuesday kick started a slew of initiatives to boost the startup ecosystem in the State by distributing seed funds and launching incubation maturity model and acceleration programs. Speaking at the Tamil Nadu Startups and Incubators Meet organised by Startup and Innovation Mission (Startup TN), the CM exuded hope that the new measures would help TN achieve its one-trillion dollar economy by 2030 goal.
Listing out the major initiatives launched to bolster the startup ecosystem, including a tech startup hub for nurturing world class enterprises called i-TNT at a cost of Rs 54.6 crore and StarupTamil Nadu Brand Labs to market products developed by startups, the CM said a launch pad will be set up for new startups and Tamil Angels Network which would be a global network of Tamil entrepreneurs. He said a new startup policy will be released soon and two mega conferences on startups will be held by the end of the financial year.
The CM disbursed the first tranche of Rs 1.55 crore, Rs 5 lakh each to 31 startup beneficiaries under the Tamil Nadu Startup Seed Grant Fund (TANSEED), to support early-stage startups at the event. He also launched regional startup hubs in Madurai, Tirunelveli, and Erode to take startup mission to smaller cities. MK Stalin also launched five accelerator programs with a focus on Industry 4.0, Commerce Tech, Agri Tech, Livelihood and Social Impact and Climate Action sectors, directly benefiting 100 startups. The programmes will help growth-stage startups with a minimum viable product (MVP) to push them to the next stage.
A ‘TN Framework for Incubator Maturity Model’ to help incubators understand their current maturity level and support them to mature to the next level was also launched. “Tamil Nadu has the most number of startup incubators and we have to develop them to global standards,” the CM said.
Dr Rajaram Venkataraman, CEO of Veltech Tech business incubator (TBI), said the model would help midlevel maturity incubators to follow global practices and improve innovation and pricing. “This can help startups move up the ladder but it is essential for the government to provide monetary incentives for high-performers in the maturity scale,” he added.