7th annual entrepreneurship summit held at IIM-Kashipur

RUDRAPUR: The Foundation for Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development (FIED) at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Kashipur, recently hosted the 7th edition of Uttishtha, 2023, an annual entrepreneurship summit aimed at promoting the socio-economic value of Uttarakhand's entrepreneur ecosystem.



Over the course of three days, the summit included a national business plan pitching competition, investors meeting, and an entrepreneur's conclave that saw impressive pitches from 15 national agri-startups. The initiative successfully secured 29 letters of intent worth Rs 5 crore in funding for these startups.

Prof Kulbhushan Balooni, director of IIM Kashipur, said, “In the last six years, FIED incubated over 140 startups generating over 3.2 billion in funding. Investors benefited from the innovative ideas and efforts made by the founders to scale up. Several FIED-incubated startups participated in the event. These startups successfully made strides in the country, raising millions from external investors. The agri-mela highlighted innovative businesses ranging from bamboo fabric clothing to toys made from wood waste.”

The summit was inaugurated by Sunil Kaushik, the general manager of NABARD, and the event was supported by the Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. The union ministry along with KVS companies also expressed their gratitude towards the enthusiasm shown by the startups during the expo.