Kerala to Launch ‘Year of Investments’ After Investment Summit: Minister Rajeeve

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
Taking a cue from the resounding success of the ‘Year of Enterprises’ initiative in 2022-23, the government will launch the ‘Year of Investment’ initiative in 2025 focusing on ventures that harness the state’s highly-skilled human resources and startup ecosystem, Minister for Industries, Law and Coir P Rajeeve said today.

The ‘Year of Investments’ initiative will be launched after the ‘Invest Kerala Global Summit’ (IKGS 2025), planned in Kochi on February 21 to 22, the Minister said at the Startup Conclave, organised jointly by the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) and Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) here as a precursor to the IKGS 2025.

The Government declared 2022-23 as Year of Enterprises, setting a target of creating at least one lakh new enterprises and 3 to 4 lakh jobs. The initiative, launched by the Department of Industries & Commerce (DI&C) with the co-operation of Local Self Governments (LSGs), Co-operation, Fisheries and Animal Husbandry departments, yielded impressive returns.

“Kerala has become an investment-friendly state with an efficient ecosystem of skilled labour. Through IKGS 2025, we want investors to leverage this potential of the state,” he said.

The Minster said that a loan scheme will be considered for those startups that need more funds against their supply orders.

In his presentation on the startup ecosystem, Dr Rathan U Kelkar, Secretary, Electronics & IT, Govt. of Kerala, said the proposed Emerging Technology Hub (ETH) is envisioned as an end-to-end ecosystem for promoting and supporting innovation in chosen sectors and emerging technologies.

Dr Kelkar said the focus sectors in the ETH will be space tech, agritech, energy, healthtech and Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, Comics and Extended Reality (AVGC-XR).

S Harikishore, Managing Director, Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSDIC), in a presentation on the ‘Invest Kerala Global Summit’, pointed out the objectives of the Startup Conclave was to highlight govt policies and support for startups.

Noting that around 200 startups will be invited to the ‘Invest Kerala Global Summit,’ Harikishore said KSIDC enables startups with funding for scaling up, mentorship, and expansion opportunities.

“KSIDC gathers feedback to strengthen the startup ecosystem and foster collaborations among startups and stakeholders. The scaling up support for startups will be by way of redeemable cumulative preference share capital investment, ranging from Rs one crore and up to Rs five crore,” he said.

Anoop Ambika, CEO, KSUM, welcomed the gathering. Santhosh Koshy Thomas, Managing Director, KINFRA, offered felicitations.

A panel discussion on ‘Opportunities and Way Forward in Startups’ held during the conclave, in which Sandith Thandasherry, CEO, NavAlt Solar and Electric Boats; Dr Lini Alexander, CEO, Bylin Medtech; Devan Chandrasekharan, Founder and MD, Fuselage Innovations; and Mohammed Jamsheer, MD, Green Worms Waste Management, were the panellists. Hari Krishnan R, Executive Director, KSIDC, was the moderator.

In another session on ‘Opportunities for Startups,’ Satyajeet Rajan, former Additional CEO, KIIFB and Premnath Ravindranath, Executive Director, KFC, spoke.

The conclave was part of a series of events the government has been holding in the build-up to IKGS 2025, which will showcase and focus on 22 priority areas that the government has identified in its New Industrial Policy. KSIDC had hosted road-shows in Mumbai, Chennai, New Delhi and Bengaluru, while a similar roadshow is also planned in Dubai.