Indian startup incubators are all the rage these days, and with good reason!
The latest NASSCOM-Zinnov report states that India now ranks third globally in the number of incubators and accelerators, after China and US.
While India has a long way to go before it catches up with the top 2 nations, the findings that have been most heartening for me are:
- Startups from tier-2 and tier-3 cities make up 20% of total startups in the country.
- 40% of the active business incubators and accelerators are now located in tier-2 and tier -3 cities.
- A major share of tier-2 and tier-3 startups are working on India-centric grassroots level problems.
While these numbers may come as a surprise to many, it only reaffirms what I have believed all through — there is immense talent even outside of the major metro cities. A conducive environment and a reasonable support system is all that they need, to be able to tide through the early challenges and grow. Both these things are now, finally, being made available to startups, thanks to the growing number of business incubators and accelerators across the country and especially those located in these cities.
I have been fortunate to be a part of one such Technology Business I
In an effort to boost startup ecosystem in the Himalayan Region, Catalyst organises Himalayan Startup Trek (HST), a
I would like to share my experience from the 2nd edition of HST which was held on April 28 and 29, 2018, at the IIT Mandi campus.
1. Impressive participants: The event brought together a diverse mix of participants; early stage and operational startups, entrepreneurs, angel investors, VCs, industry experts, policy making bodies, startup associations, incubators and accelerators from various parts of the country, and of course startup enthusiasts.
This year’s event saw a footfall of 200 — a remarkable three-fold increase from the 2017 event. Besides this, 100+ startup enthusiasts also participated in the various sessions held during these two days.
The participating startup teams were from a wide range of sectors including clean tech, health tech, consumer tech, edu tech, affordable housing, security etc, of which 30 startups were invited to pitch during the event to raise investor funding or get incubation support from Catalyst. Six startups have been selected for incubation support.
2. Great sessions: For an event in its 2nd edition, it had an impressive line-up of speakers and panellists. To the delight of startup enthusiasts as well as the participating startups, relevant topics such as first-generation entrepreneurship, emerging technologies, customer experience and attracting investors, were discussed.
There were interesting sessions for the participating startups like Meet a Mentor – one on one mentoring sessions, Investors’ Den – for those looking to raise funding, Idea to Market Bootcamp – an in-depth session by Prof. Bringi Dev from IIM Bangalore, Pitch to Catalyst – a closed door session for incubation support and seed funding and Startup Showcase – a chance to display prototype/product and gather feedback.
Simply put, there was something for everyone.
Panel: Landing the right investors Hemendra Mathur, Hemant Kanakia, Manish Kheterpal, Samir Shah 
Mr. Hemant Kanakia during keynote address 
Idea to market bootcamp by Prof Bringi Dev, IIM Bangalore
3. Focus on the Himalayan region: Though IIT Mandi Catalyst has been actively supporting entrepreneurs from across the country, it has a definite inclination towards researching and providing innovative solutions to the problems relating to the Himalayan region and Himachal Pradesh in particular.
One of its incubated startups has developed an indigenously built low-cost landslide monitoring and warning technology which is now deployed in the Kullu-Mandi region to minimise / avoid casualties caused by landslides.
This year’s HST event had the eminent Sonam Wangchuk as a keynote speaker. Mr Wangchuk wowed the audience by his incredulous account of the many innovations currently underway in tough terrain of Ladakh using the basic principles of science.
Mr. Sonam Wangchuk during his address
4. Work hard, Play harder: And the best part; it wasn’t all work and no play. The sessions were relaxed, quite informal in comparison to the events in metros cities, the pressure was definitely lesser and there was an air of camaraderie. It allowed for some great networking, loads of learning and exchange of ideas.
When one is surrounded by such natural beauty, it makes no sense to stay indoors. Does it? A cultural evening put up by the students of IIT Mandi had some great musical performances which helped everyone unwind and relax after a hectic day.
The evenings were spent in the open under the open skies, with everyone just chilling out and talking to each other. Unlike events in the metro cities, where people fly-in attend the sessions and fly-out or have other plans. Here everyone had no choice but socialise with each other. One cannot fly out of a secluded place like this at a drop of a hat, you see! Jokes apart, it gave us all a chance to get to know each other at a more personal level.
Many participants said that the two days took them back to their hostel days, not sure if it was the IIT campus effect or just that everyone was holed up for the duration of the event at the location. This ensured for unhurried, leisurely conversations, experience-sharing and bonding.
Some of the participants also took the opportunity to trek up to the hills or did some trout fishing in the Uhl river, which is right next to the campus. Now this is not what you’d normally expect at a startup pitch event, would you?
5. You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave: The word picturesque is just not enough to describe the IIT Mandi campus. You have to see it to believe it! You will carry the images of the valleys, the Uhl river, the pine trees and the laughter and conversations for a long time to come.
Also, for first timers getting to the campus is an experience in itself. You actually have to cross valleys and rivers to get there. And once you reach the place you may actually not want to leave, ever.
If you are an early stage startup, a budding entrepreneur or interested in finding innovative solutions to the problems of the Himalayan region then the Himalayan Startup Trek is something you should explore.
If you have participated in the Himalayan Startup Trek or any other startup pitch event, would love to hear your thoughts. Your comments would be greatly appreciated.