Are you a graduate with entrepreneurial dreams? Or, are you someone who is a part of the corporate world trying to break the shackles to follow your dreams of being an entrepreneur? Are you afraid to travel the road less traveled?
Every excellent business empire today was once a frivolous dream. What made the difference was the men behind these ventures were not apprehensive of the first step.
Here are a few reasons why you should work towards accomplishing your idea and your dreams.
- Now is the time
With the Government of India aiding start-ups and manufacturing in the country like never before, the next few years seem more promising for first-time entrepreneurs.
Going by the Economic Survey of 2015-2016, India is home to more than 19,000 startups that are tech-enabled. Also, in recent years, Indian startups have seen an unexpected valuation. This surge is more than promising.
In the first half of 2015, Indian startups raised a whopping 3.5 billion American dollars in funding, and there are close to 490 active investors in India (as of the end of 2015). The number of deals signed has only increased to 18{ed162fdde9fdc472551df9f31f04601345edf7e4eff6ea93114402690d8fa616} in 2016. This growth suggests a definite growth curve in the future years too.
In 2016, India was ranked Number 3 in the world in the number of start-ups. Certain organizations like NASSCOM plan to support close to 10,000 startups in India in the coming years. Regulatory bodies like SEBI have now eased the norms, and it is far more comfortable for the companies to raise funds through the IPO route. Therefore, raising money for your start-up is not as arduous as it once was.
If you have an idea that stands out, you will get all around support from the right institutions when you put it across.
- Incubators in the university campuses provide the right platform.
To aid the ‘Start-Up India’ initiative, the leading universities launched start-up incubators within the campuses to nurture business start-ups. These nurseries have seen success in certain IITs, IIMs and Delhi University.
What is interesting is the growth rate of these incubators. 2016 saw a 40{ed162fdde9fdc472551df9f31f04601345edf7e4eff6ea93114402690d8fa616} increase in the number of these nurseries, with aid from government and corporate. In the same year, the state helped set up 30 new incubators on the university campus and close to 66{ed162fdde9fdc472551df9f31f04601345edf7e4eff6ea93114402690d8fa616} of them have been established in the Tier II and Tier III cities.
Another interesting fact is that there has been a 25{ed162fdde9fdc472551df9f31f04601345edf7e4eff6ea93114402690d8fa616} increase in the number of student entrepreneurs. Can you believe in 2016 alone, 350 startups were launched by young students?
Lithics.in, a renowned online marketing place promoting handicrafts, paintings and other gift items from the weaker sections of the society was formed by three students of Delhi University. They are housed in Technology Business Incubator under the Cluster Innovation Centre at Delhi University. Through tie-ups with NGOs, they market products from the weaker sections of the society and have received several accolades and awards for their work. Lithics.in is an example of a successful campus aided venture.
iii. Broad societal benefits
As a society, we continually face challenges from all aspects. To tackle these problems and to make ourselves visible on a global platform, we need to embrace innovation and change. How can you promote innovation in the nation? The answer is simple, by encouraging startups.
Startups also carve a path to discover solutions to the most pressing societal problems. If you have an answer to any of the issues the society faces, you could bring about change benefitting the large sections of people.
Take the example of two students from Bhaskaracharya College of Applied Sciences (DU). Their idea was born while lamenting about the waste management strategy in the city. This led to the formation of We-Convert. They introduced a machine called E-collector which accepts the user’s waste and generates rewards in return. After fruitful collaborations, the venture is eyeing revenue of Rs 67 lakhs for the fiscal year 17-18 and is starting its expansions in many cities across India.
A 30-year-old Delhi University graduate along with an IITian started Zophop, an app to help the daily commuters of public transport. The app supports real-time tracking of the position of buses and its time of arrival at any stop along its route. Passengers can also purchase tickets in advance. Zophop has made the commute more accessible for passengers in more than 15 cities across India. They smoothened out the challenging commute time for lakhs of daily travelers.
The future seems promising.
India needs close to 20 million jobs a year, and as per a global data, it is the startups that provide a large percentage of employment when compared to established enterprises. Startups aid in the economic reforming of a nation and that is what India needs at the moment.
When you delve into the startup bandwagon, you are not just accomplishing your dreams but bringing about a change in a small yet significant way by creating more jobs and helping in the economic growth of the nation.
Keyword: startups at DU
