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The Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) is in the process of creating angel funding with a corpus of ₹10 crore to set up innovative start-ups.
Aruna Sundararajan, Managing Director, said here on Friday that KSIDC would extend a maximum seed capital of ₹25 lakh each for all innovative projects, be it in IT-based, agri-based, biotechnology or any other sectors where there is some innovative component. The funds will be launched in the current year itself.
Start-up cultureSpeaking to reporters on the sidelines of the Nasscom Product Conclave 2014, she pointed out that the start-up culture is growing among youngsters in the State thanks to the policy initiatives of the Kerala Government to encourage entrepreneurial activities in the last few years.
For years, Kerala’s strategy was to attract people from outside to set up ventures. Today there is a considerable growth in entrepreneur culture, which is a new trend and the government would like to support it, she added.
Venture fundsKSIDC, she said, will also partner with Kerala Financial Corporation (KFC) to launch private venture funds in the State. The corporation is trying to introduce private venture funds managed by professionals to support Kerala-based start-ups.
The idea is to get professional entrepreneurs and investors to become angel investors, she said adding that KSIDC would propose to offer matching funds as part of the partnership.
Ravi Gururaj, Chairman, Nasscom Product Council, said the Indian software product industry is growing exponentially and the focus of NPC is to provide a platform for Indian start-ups and emerging companies to access the support available in the eco system to build its markets.
VK Mathews, Chairman, Nasscom Kerala Regional Council, said that today, over 90 per cent of the IT output comes from metro cities with hardly any contribution from the 56 Tier2/3 cities.
This can be addressed properly by the new government by continuing the STPI export tax benefits to companies operating in non metro cities. This will reduce the digital divide, improve inclusiveness and also serve to decongest the metro cities, he added.
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