Govt to offer support, mentorship to budding entrepreneurs: Arora

Aman Sood

Patiala, October 31

Punjab’s Employment Generation and Skill Development Minister Aman Arora today highlighted the Punjab Government’s commitment towards providing support and mentorship to budding entrepreneurs and individuals with innovative business ideas in the state.

“The aim is to empower those in need and transform them into thriving business leaders. The government has created a conducive environment and chalked out assistance programmes for emerging entrepreneurs,” he said.

Arora made these remarks during his visit to Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology to honour the winners of the ‘Future Tycoons-Startup Challenge-2’. The competition, a first-of-its-kind in the country, was organised by the district administration in collaboration with Startup Punjab.

Deputy Commissioner Sakshi Sawhney described the initiative as an effort to level the playing field for entrepreneurial opportunities and access to funding, networks and markets.

The inaugural edition saw participants setting up stalls at the G20 Summit in Amritsar and many others have successfully developed a mature market and clientele. Sawhney stated that the second edition had a remarkable 1,109 participants, with 81 going through screening rounds and 22 emerging as finalists.

The jury, consisting of industry experts and intellectual property rights specialists, played an independent role in the selection process. The event was conducted in partnership with Startup Punjab and Invest Punjab among others, and memorandum of understandings (MOUs) were signed for angel investments between the District Bureau of Employment and Enterprises, Patiala, and local industrialists.

Four categories, namely open, physically challenged, women and student, received an assured sum of Rs 50,000 each. The competition is akin to “Shark Tank” with a twist — all participants receive mentorship and guidance on how to present their ideas. Workshops are provided to help increase sales and expand their customer base. Additionally, the challenge aims to address socially relevant issues and make entrepreneurship accessible to underrepresented groups in the employment and industrial sectors.

The winners of this year’s competition are Manjot Singh (persons with disability category), Sahil Khan (student category), Sukhjit Kaur (women category) and Priya Garg (open category). In addition, Ryan Dhanjal and Paramveer Singh were honoured with consolation prizes.

All participants will continue to receive mentorship and support through knowledge partners Chitkara and Thapar. The event was attended by various dignitaries, including Director of Employment Generation Amrit Singh and Director of Thapar Institute Padama Kumar Nayar.