S. Vishnu Sharma
IIT Mandi Catalyst launched its second batch of Start Exploration Programme of the year 2020 from 21 August.
Overall, this is the seventh batch of startups that IIT Mandi Catalyst will host. With this startup batch, Catalyst has now supported over 100 startups since its inception.
IIT Mandi Catalyst will start batch online and bring startups to campus in a phased manner.
After this programme, the startups will have an opportunity to raise funds through various funding schemes hosted by IIT Mandi Catalyst.
This includes up to Rs. 10 lakh from Nidhi-Prayas scheme and Rs. 50 lakh seed support funding under the NIDHI Seed Support System programme of the Department of Science and Technology.
IIT Mandi Catalyst kickstarts another great exploration
It is interesting to note that IIT Mandi Catalyst launched in 2016, the first technology business incubator of Himachal Pradesh, helps the startups to convert their ideas into viable businesses through this programme.
The programme run by IIT Mandi Catalyst will go on for a period of three months during which the startups will be provided with a funding support of Rs 1.5 lakhs.
Also the IIT Mandi Catalyst team will mentor the startups and provide them with training and network to grow their innovative ideas.
Speaking about this programme of IIT Mandi Catalyst, faculty-in-charge at IIT Mandi Catalyst Dr. Puran Singh said during the present uncertain times which are proving difficult for entrepreneurs, they have decided to start the batch online.
This is a critical time to support aspiring entrepreneurs and innovators as innovation is the need of the day. Gradually, the startups will be brought to the campus, said Puran Singh.
In this batch of the startup exploration programme by IIT Mandi Catalyst, a total of thirty-two startups from different sectors including waste management, agrotech have been shortlisted.
Also shortlisted are startups from healthtech, biotech, edutech, tourism and hospitality, manufacturing, enterprise management and cleantech sectors.
It is worth noting that out of the startups shortlisted for the programme by IIT Mandi Catalyst, 12 startups are from the Himalayan region.
On completion of this exploration programme, IIT Mandi Catalyst will provide the startups funding options from multiple sources.
It is notable that IIT Mandi Catalyst is currently hosting six funding schemes that provide funding for every stage of startup – idea validation, prototyping, and commercialization.
The funding under these schemes of IIT Mandi Catalyst ranges between Rs 1.5 Lakhs are Rs 50 lakhs and are sponsored by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of India, Department of Industries (Himachal Pradesh State Government) and IIT Mandi.
Since the first batch of 97 students joined in July 2009, IIT Mandi has grown to currently host 125 faculty and 1,655 students who are enrolled in various programmes of studies in undergraduate, postgraduate and research programmes, and 1,141 alumni.
IIT Mandi is a fully residential campus with 1.4 lakh sq. m. buildings completed. It has a guest house with 88 rooms, an 750-seater Auditorium, campus school, sports complex and hospital.
IIT Mandi has four Academic Schools and three major Research Centers.
The Schools are: School of Computing and Electrical Engineering, School of Basic Sciences, School of Engineering, and School of Humanities and Social Sciences.
The Centers are: Advanced Materials Research Centre (AMRC; set up with an investment of Rs. 60 crore), Centre for Design and Fabrication of Electrical Devices (C4DFED; has Rs. 50 crore worth of fabrication tools), and BioX Centre (has acquired research equipment worth Rs. 15 crore).
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In 2017, the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, selected IIT Mandi to lead the prestigious Rs. 10 crore FarmerZone Project.
To cater to the growing and changing needs of Indian industry and the aspirations of students, IIT Mandi has introduced 7 B.Tech., 7 M.Tech., 5 M.Sc., 4 Ph.D., 1 I-Ph.D and 1 M.A programmes in the past 10 years.
The unique, project-oriented B.Tech. curriculum is centered around its 4-year long Design and Innovation stream.
From August 2019, IIT Mandi started 3 new and unique B. Tech. programmes in Data Science and Engineering, Engineering Physics, and Dual Degree in Bioengineering.
Since the inception of the Institute, IIT Mandi faculty have been involved in over 275 Research and Development (R&D) projects worth more than Rs. 120 crore. In the past 10 years, the Institute has signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with as many as 11 international and 12 national universities.
IIT Mandi Catalyst, first Technology Business Incubator in Himachal Pradesh, has helped over 75 startups since 2017 and is changing both the industry profile and entrepreneurial mindset in the state.
So far, Catalyst has secured external funding of Rs. 24 crore from various funding agencies.
Enabling Women of Kamand Valley (EWOK) is another innovative programme run by IIT Mandi, which focuses on imparting skills training to rural women to enable them to start village-scale businesses.
IIT Mandi has been ranked no. 31 in the Engineering Institutions Category in the India Rankings 2020 released by National Institutional Ranking Framework, Ministry of Human Resources Development, Govt. of India.