NE Venture Fund for Startups

Union Minister of State (I⟋c) for Development of North Eastern Region has invited young Start-Ups from across the country to avail of the “Venture Fund” facility being provided by the ministry to anybody who wishes to set up an entrepreneurship in the region, particularly in fruit, food, handicraft and tourism industries.

Union Minister of State (I⟋C) for Development of North Eastern
  • The benefits of North East Venture Fund are in addition to the Startup India initiative of the central government, which includes provisions for tax exemptions as well as a three-month exit period.

What is NE Venture Fund?

  • NE venture fund focuses on encouraging entrepreneurship in the region, primarily by offering support to first-generation entrepreneurs.
  • Through this venture fund, the ministry plans to provide initial capital to young entrepreneurs, who decide to set up their ventures in the region.
  • The fund was launched in April 2017, focuses on early and growth-stage investments.
  • Aim to back startups in the fields of IT and ITeS, food processing, healthcare, tourism, retail and the aggregation of services, among others
  • The size of the fund was pegged at $ 15.5 Mn (₹ 100 Cr) and each investment was to be limited to a minimum of $ 39K (₹ 25 Lakhs) and a maximum of about $ 1.5 Mn (₹ 10 Cr) .

Other Key Facts

  • The Manipur government recently announced budget of about $ 5.4 Mn (₹ 35 Cr) under the Startup India initiative to encourage local entrepreneurs.
  • Assam collaborated with Invest India to launch its first startup policy.
  • Odisha launched Startup India-Odisha Yatra to travel to 60 educational institutions across the 16 districts of the state.
  • 15 Indian states have already announced their startup policies which are Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Rajasthan, Goa, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Telangana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
  • Over 65 proposals from youngsters all over India are under process to avail of the “Venture Fund” for setting up entrepreneurship in the Northeast.
  • The fund is set up by North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Ltd (NEDFi) to encourage entrepreneurship in the region, mainly by offering support to the first-generation entrepreneurs.
  • NEDFi also performs the role of hand-holding and capacity building
  • (MDoNER) is the deciding body under Government of India for socio-economic development in the region.
  • The North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Ltd. (NEDFi) is a Public Limited Company providing assistance to micro, small, medium and large enterprises within the northeastern region (NER) .
  • Other organisations under MDoNER are North Eastern Regional Agricultural Marketing Corporation Limited (NERAMAC) , Sikkim Mining Corporation Limited (SMC) and North Eastern Handlooms and Handicrafts Development Corporation (NEHHDC) .

North-Eastern States

  • Northeast India (officially called North Eastern Region, NER) is the easternmost region of India.
  • It comprises the eight states Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura.
  • Seven Sister States is a popular term for the contiguous states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura.
  • North East includes seven sisters and Assam.

Examrace Team at May 16, 2018