SUMMARY
The state government has sanctioned the equity investments in five startups run by entrepreneurs coming from scheduled castes and scheduled tribe communities
“StartupTN will also provide mentoring and post-investment support that will help them achieve their goals and milestones more efficiently and effectively,” a senior official said
The infusion of INR 7.5 Cr was made under the Tamil Nadu SC/ST Startup Fund via Tamil Nadu Startup and Innovation Mission (StartupTN)
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To encourage entrepreneurship in marginalised communities, the Tamil Nadu government has sanctioned equity investments of up to INR 7.5 Cr in five startups run by entrepreneurs coming from scheduled castes (SC) and scheduled tribe (ST) communities.
Tamil Nadu’s chief minister Thiru MK Stalin handed the sanction orders for equity investments to these five startups.
The infusion of INR 7.5 Cr was made under the Tamil Nadu SC/ST Startup Fund via Tamil Nadu Startup and Innovation Mission (StartupTN).
The Tamil Nadu SC/ST Startup fund is an equity investment and debt fund and has a corpus of INR 30 Cr. Out of 330 applicants, five startups have been shortlisted for equity investments.
“StartupTN will also provide mentoring and post-investment support that will help them achieve their goals and milestones more efficiently and effectively,” a senior official said.
Government officials informed that equity investment in these startups will help them acquire more clientele and expand into new markets as well as sales spaces.
Here are the five startups backed by the Tamil Nadu SC/ST Startup Fund.
Unibose Technology
The Tamil Nadu-based startup, which was founded in 2020 by Manikandan Dakshinamoorthy, builds robots for cleaning, inspection, agriculture and defence purposes. It has received INR 2.5 Cr equity investment from the state government.
Pack N Back
The Coimbatore-based startup, founded in 2017, is a logistics platform that helps track commodities and also, offers packaging solutions to customers. It has received INR 2 Cr equity infusion from the government.
Ywe Auto Assist
Ywe Auto Assist India manages a road assistance platform called TowMan. The Chennai-based platform helps vehicle owners at the time of vehicle breakdown, stoppage and other allied problems. It also offers pick-up and delivery services for customers. The startup has bagged INR 1 Cr equity investment from the state government.
EcoSoft Zolutions
Founded in 2018, this Chennai-based SaaS startup helps small and medium-sized companies manage their operating systems, networks and databases. It has secured INR 1 Cr equity infusion from the state government, which will be used for pivoting into a fintech startup.
PEAS Automation
The Chennai-based startup offers industrial automation solutions, retrofit services, system integration and sensors for automotive and tyres, food and beverage, and infrastructural domains. The startup has received INR 50K from the state government and will use the funds for the development as well as the sale of its multiprocessing units.
Before this, the Tamil Nadu government rolled out schemes for women-led greentech and ruraltech startups in December last year. It also shared plans of dedicating incubation centres for women-led startups, increasing seed funding from INR 10 Lakh to INR 15 Lakh for early-stage funds.
In April 2022, the state government also ramped up its startup policy to support startup founders. It also shared plans of supporting the creation of as much as 10K startups in the province by 2026.
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