Social Capital vital for SC/STs Entrepreneurs: Minister Radhakrishnan

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
Making a strong pitch for an attitudinal change towards deprived sections, Minister for Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes K. Radhakrishnan today said it is the responsibility of society to provide social capital to entrepreneurs from SC/ST communities to help them become job providers and build sustainable enterprises.

By changing its perspectives, society needs to lend a helping hand to them to overcome the challenges, Radhakrishnan said while inaugurating the Startup City Entrepreneurial Orientation Programme at Technopark here.

Jointly launched by Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) and the state government’s empowerment initiative Unnathi, the Startup City project aims to support entrepreneurs and innovators from SC/ST communities.

Unnathi CEO Prasanth Nair presided over the function and KSUM CEO Anoop Ambika welcomed the gathering.

The project is primarily meant for supporting entrepreneurs and innovators from SC/ST communities to set up or expand their enterprises. It opens before aspiring entrepreneurs a wide range of opportunities with support and facilities from the state government.

While stressing upon entrepreneurs and startups to explore new possibilities, Shri Radhakrishnan said their projects must aim for becoming self-sufficient and job providers.

The Kerala Empowerment Society was formed to overcome challenges of new age and create more jobs and income for educated youths, the minister said, adding that its partnership with KSUM and Kerala Knowledge Economy Mission was in that direction.

“Kerala Knowledge Economy Mission targets around 20 lakh jobs by 2026 and two lakh people will be selected from SC/STs communities. More than 86,000 SC students and 7,000 ST students have already registered with it and their training programme will start soon,” he informed.

Radhakrishnan said the government was able to send around 425 students to foreign universities in the period between May 20, 2021 and March 31, 2023. Of them, 344 were from the SC, 24 from the STs and 57 from other backward communities.

“In January 2024, around 310 students from these communities will also go abroad for their studies,” the minister added.

While presenting an overview of the Startup City project, Nair said it envisages a possibility for change in the SC/ST communities and Unnathi is trying to give end-to-end assistance to entrepreneurs.

“Unnathi will help them break the entry barrier in marketplace with its business aggregation model and assistance for brand development,” he added.

The first batch of Startup City project represents diversified sectors, such as Internet of Things (IoT), defence, airspace, hospitality, manufacturing and Small and Medium Enterprises, Nair said.

Anoop said of the total 188 applications received from entrepreneurs, innovators and startup enthusiasts belonging to SC/ST communities for the first batch of Startup City project, 138 of them have been shortlisted now.

He urged budding entrepreneurs to equip themselves with a deep insight into their ideas and take it forward with determination.

Under this project, entrepreneurs and start-ups will get necessary guidelines for marketing and generating capital to take forward their enterprises in a sustainable manner, Anoop said.

Scheduled Caste Development Department (SCDD) Director K Gopalakrishnan; KSUM Assistant Manager Arun G; and Technical Officer Vishal B were also present.

Under Startup City project, the selected entrepreneurs will receive financial assistance, expert mentorship, business establishment and development assistance. It will provide incubation facilities and support for entrepreneurial ventures promoted by entrepreneurs from SC/ST in multiple sectors.