The Hindu Business Line : Relevant read

The article `Trailblazers' by Preethi J in eWorld has donetwo things that need to be done if we are serious about spreading the entrepreneurial culture among the educated.

Talking as it does about the starting up of a company called AllGo Embedded Systems, it gives aspiring entrepreneurs more role models to draw inspiration from.

Second, the article rightly pinpoints the deficiency in our banking system in promoting entrepreneurship in the country.

At the low end of the spectrum, we have Government-sponsored programmes wherein banks lend less than Rs 2 lakh for those plunging into entrepreneurship, with the sole objective of meeting the targets fixed for them.

Here the `bankability' of the project, or commitment of the person, does not appear to be important.

At the other end, venture capital companies are ready to pitch in if you have a project with a `killer application' and involving a large dose of investment, at least by Indian standards. But there is an area in the middle and considerable opportunities lie there.

Neither banks nor VCs touch these opportunities, either because of the size being too high or too low, or because there is no killer application.

The solution here does not lie with the Government announcing schemes for a few crores or so.

Banks need to shift from Project Report mode to Business Plan mode.

Educational institutions, particularly the management institutes, should play an active role here.

S. Gnana Haran