NIDHI Program

07-09-2024

06:30 PM

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1 min read
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Overview:

Recently, the union Minister of Science and Technology virtually inaugurated 8 new NIDHI i-TBIs across India along with a new DST-NIDHI Website at IIT Delhi celebrating 8 years of Department of Science and Technology’s initiative (DST-NIDHI).

About NIDHI Programme: 

  • The National Initiative for Developing and Harnessing innovations (NIDHI) program was launched in 2016.
  • It is an umbrella programme conceived and developed by the Innovation & Entrepreneurship division, Department of Science & Technology.
  • Aim: To nurture start-ups through scouting, supporting and scaling innovations.
  • Key stakeholders: Various departments and ministries of the central government, state governments, academic and R & D institutions, mentors, financial institutions, angel investors, venture capitalists and private sectors.
  • Funding: It is funded by the National Science & Technology Entrepreneurship Development Board (NSTEDB).
  • Key Components of the Program
    • The NIDHI- PRAYAS (Promoting and Accelerating Young and Aspiring Innovators and Startups) program at Proof-of-Concept level provides mentoring and financial support to innovator for converting their ideas into prototypes.
    • NIDHI Entrepreneurs-In-Residence (EIR) Program provides fellowships to the students opting for entrepreneurship.
    • The NIDHI Seed Support Program provisions availability of early-stage seed support funding to startups and the NIDHI Accelerator program speeds up the investment readiness of the startups.
    • The NIDHI program has been helpful in creating state-of-the art infrastructure for incubating startups in technology sectors through Technology Business Incubators (TBIs) and Centres of Excellence (CoE).
    • NIDHI Accelerator: An accelerator is typically a 3-6 months fast track structured program helping ideas get accelerated to the next orbit.

What are i-Technology Business Incubators (i-TBIs)?

  • i-TBIs (Inclusive TBI) is a three years duration initiative Supported by DST for educational institutions who are likely to foster innovation and entrepreneurship culture among the students, faculties, entrepreneurs, and nearby communities.

Q1: What is Startup India Initiative?

It is a flagship initiative of the Government of India intended to catalyse start-up culture with the objective of supporting entrepreneurs, building a robust startup ecosystem and transforming India into a country of job creators instead of job seekers.

Source: Women-led StartUps to place India in global arena, says Jitendra Singh