speech on entrepreneurship in india

We have created Aadhaar - the world's largest biometric based digital database. This currently covers over 1.15 billion people and digitally authenticates over 40 million transactions daily. We now digitally provide monetary benefits of various government schemes to the beneficiaries through Direct Benefit Transfer using Aadhaar.

Almost 300 million bank accounts with deposits of over 685 billion rupees, or over 10 billion dollars, have been opened through the Jan Dhan Yojana. These bring previously un-banked sections of society into the formal financial system. Of these, 53 per cent accounts are of women.

We are steadily working towards a less cash economy and have launched a Unified Payment Interface App called BHIM. In less than a year, this platform is processing almost 280 thousand transactions daily.

Having almost completed our programme to connect all villages with electricity, we have launched the Saubhagya scheme. This will provide electricity connections to all families by December 2018.

Each of you young Indian entrepreneurs have the ability to create a New India 2022. You are the nation's wealth: PM @narendramodi &; NITI Aayog (@NITIAayog) November 28, 2017

Under our clean energy programme, in just 3 years, we have doubled the renewables capacity from 30 thousand Megawatts to about 60 thousand Megawatts. Solar energy generation has increased over 80 percent in the last year. We are working on developing a national gas grid. A comprehensive national energy policy is also in the pipeline.

Our Swachh Bharat Mission to improve sanitation and cleanliness, and the rural and urban housing missions underline our commitment towards dignity of life.

Our infrastructure and connectivity programmes like Sagarmala and Bharatmala offer entrepreneurs many business opportunities for investment.

Our recent World Food India initiative helped us engage with entrepreneurs in the food processing industry and agricultural waste sectors.

My government understands that an environment of transparent policies and a rule of law providing a level-playing field are necessary for entrepreneurship to flourish.

A historic overhaul of the taxation system has been recently undertaken, bringing in the GST across the country: PM Narendra Modi at #GlobalEntrepreneurshipSummit pic.twitter.com/a1kGnUKVwy &; ANI (@ANI) November 28, 2017

Tough measures have been adopted to tackle the parallel economy, check tax evasion and control black money.

Our efforts have been recognized by Moody's recent upgrade of India's government bond ratings. This upgrade comes after a gap of almost 14 years.

India has improved its rank from 54 in 2014 to 35 in 2016 on the World Bank's Logistics Performance Index. This signifies the relative ease and efficiency with which products can be moved into and from a country.

An investment-friendly environment needs to be stable from the macro-economic perspective. We have succeeded in containing the fiscal and current account deficits, and curbing inflation. Our foreign exchange reserves have crossed 400 billion dollars, and we continue to attract large foreign capital flows.

To my young entrepreneur friends from India, I would like to say: each of you has something valuable to contribute towards creating a New India by 2022. You are vehicles of change and instruments of India's transformation.

To my entrepreneur friends from across the globe, I would like to say: Come, Make in India, Invest in India - for India, and for the world. I invite each one of you to become a partner in India's growth story. And once again assure you of our whole-hearted support.

I am informed that President Trump has declared November 2017 as National Entrepreneurship Month. America has also observed National Entrepreneurs' Day on November 21st. This summit will certainly resonate with those themes. Let me conclude by wishing you fruitful, engaging and rewarding deliberations at this summit.

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Entrepreneurship in India: A global perspective

Can simple changes in the perception of Indians be the key to growth in Indian entrepreneurship?

By Dr Anand Kulkarni

Dr Anand Kulkarni is the Principal Adviser for Planning and Performance at Victoria University.

Entrepreneurship is vital for job creation, economic growth and problem-solving. It also reflects a society�s capacity for boldness, risk-taking and creativity. More specifically, according to the Global Entrepreneurship Development Institute (GEDI), there is a strong positive association between entrepreneurship, economic growth and innovation.

The GEDI has recently released it’s 2018 Global Entrepreneurship Index, a ranking of 137 countries. Countries are ranked on 14 criteria: Opportunity perception (whether the population can identify opportunities to start a business); start-up skills; risk acceptance; networks; cultural support; opportunity start-up (whether entrepreneurs are motivated by opportunity rather than necessity); technology absorption; human capital; competition; product innovation; process innovation; high growth (business intention to grow); internationalisation and risk capital availability.

How does India fare? India�s performance is important given the priority of the �start-up India� initiatives and the crucial role of entrepreneurship in generating jobs in a stagnant Indian labour market.

India’s performance as per the GEDI index

According to GEDI, India is ranked 68th out of 137 countries, a �middling� performance. As per the Asia Pacific region, India is again in the middle position, 14th out of 28 countries. The leading regional players are Australia, Hong Kong and Taiwan at first, second and third positions respectively. It is noteworthy that India falls below China (9th) and more established regional economies such as Korea (4th) and Japan (6th) in the region. The performance by specific criteria also makes for an interesting viewing. India�s strength areas where its performance is above its overall score, are in product and process innovation, internationalisation, opportunity start-up, risk acceptance, opportunity perception and robust competition in the marketplace. Its performance on human capital is broadly at par with its overall performance.

Where does India score the most?

India’s strongest performance falls under the criterion of product innovation where its score is equal to the best in the world. This measures a country�s ability and potential to generate new products and to adopt or imitate existing products. India, for example, has increasingly developed a reputation for producing �frugal innovation� products which comprise of acceptable performance standards (often aimed at the bottom of the pyramid of consumers) and features but are associated with an extremely low cost for the consumers. Such innovations challenge the usual perceptions about the price and quality in the developed world and build upon India�s strength in improvisation, ingenuity and innovation capabilities.

In broader terms, India’s strength lies in its ability to identify the opportunities and risk-taking, which in turn links to its capabilities in product innovation and a healthy attitude towards internationalisation and seeking new markets beyond the home base.

Reasons for India’s “middling” performance

By contrast, India�s weaker areas, where it scores below the overall score, are in start-up skills, networks and cultural support, technology absorption (by far the weakest), high growth and risk capital availability. However, the weakest area for India lies in technology absorption which is the ability of a country to access, utilise and enmesh the knowledge from elsewhere and then integrate it. This still suggests a somewhat insular approach to innovation and could also point towards the concerns about investing in technology, technological partnerships, the need to stay abreast about current trends, greater labour market flexibility and a more supportive education and training system.

Some other challenges and influences

Interestingly, India also faces some acute challenges in terms of networking and cultural support. India does not perform at the same standard as a number of other countries do in terms of how well entrepreneurs know and connect with each other to share ideas, technical know-how, market connections and to undertake joint activities. Cultural support is also a key weakness in the Indian set up. This measures how a society views entrepreneurship in terms of its status, as a career choice and how this view is affected by corruption.

The influence of corruption on societal views about entrepreneurship points towards the fact that corruption continues to rear its ugly head in India despite numerous reforms and progress in this area. Also, the perception of Indians about entrepreneurship as a career choice shows that there is still a traditional underlying preference in India for the stable and secure salaried employment as compared to entrepreneurship.

Lastly, surprising is the fact that India does not perform well on the availability of risk capital, despite the various measures that have been put in place under the “start-up India” initiatives. Thus, a critical challenge remains for the entrepreneurial sector in ensuring that the appropriate amount and type of capital is available in an entrepreneurial life cycle, whenever needed.

The future approach

In order to increase its GEDI index ranking significantly, India needs to pay more attention to the skills required for entrepreneurship including staff training, labour market flexibility in terms of being able to hire the right people with the right skills at the right time, and the entrepreneurs� level of education. There is also a need for improving the capacity of the education system in providing high-quality support including a greater focus on entrepreneurship courses.

Featured Image Source:� MDGovpics �on� Visualhunt �/� CC BY

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Scope and Present Scenario of Entrepreneurship In India 

In its seventh decade of independence, India is standing on the cusp of major change, which can be summed up in one line: Entrepreneurship in India. 

Known as the startup hub of the world, multiple young and dynamic Indians are taking the path of entrepreneurship, which is not only driving them forward but the entire country as well. Right from gaining investments from other countries, to creating job opportunities for fellow Indians, these entrepreneurs have changed the way the world looks at India. 

Speaking on this topic, Ajay Kumar Misra from Tata Global Beverages said, “we are sitting at 1.2 billion , going on to 1.5 billion in population. While this is a huge challenge it is also a large opportunity. It will stretch our finite resources to the limit unless there are some breakthroughs in technology.”

And, this is extremely true when it comes to entrepreneurship . In this article, we will discuss the scope and present scenario of entrepreneurship in the country and what is in store if you, too, decide to choose this career path. 

Table of Contents

What Is Entrepreneurship?

The definition of entrepreneurship .

Considering entrepreneurship is a broad concept, there are multiple definitions that attempt to capture its entire essence. Some of the most popular definitions that can help you understand this concept better are mentioned below: 

• Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of value. Under this definition, the term is explained as bringing about a change, which may include other values, instead of just economic times 
• Entrepreneurship is having the capacity and willingness to develop, organize, and manage a business venture along with dealing with any risks to make a profit. This definition purely focuses on launching and running a business and making a profit. 

Is Entrepreneurship Age Restricted?

There are multiple studies and surveys that have attempted to define the ideal age range for successful entrepreneurs. However, all you need to do it look at the entrepreneurs who are at the peak of success and you’ll realize it’s practically impossible to narrow it down to one age group. 

For example, Evan Williams who was 35 when Twitter rose to fame. However, Mark Pincus was 41 when Zynga became a renowned brand, and Arianna Huffington was 54 when Huffington Post became an extremely famous news and blogging site. 

Moreover, it is commonly believed that when it comes to innovative startups that revolutionize an industry, younger founders tend to excel. On the other hand, to build a sustainable business, older entrepreneurs find more success. However, that truly doesn’t hold much credibility. 

It’s no secret that multiple young individuals launch ‘me too’ businesses after learning and adopting practices from successful businesses. And, older entrepreneurs like Dean Kamen and Elon Musk continue to provide revolutionary products that disrupt the industry they’re working in. 

Hence, it goes without saying that there is no ‘right’ age to chase after your entrepreneurial dream. All you need is a fire in your belly to bring your billion-dollar idea to reality, and the motivation needed to overcome all the challenges that you will face. 

Related – Why Entrepreneurship is Important in Recent Times in the World

Importance of Entrepreneurship in India

There’s no doubt that entrepreneurship can greatly impact the economy of a nation, hence, entrepreneurs are often considered to be national assets, who are motivated and remunerated through various Government policies. This is primarily because a great entrepreneur has the capability to completely change the way we live and work. They can not only improve our standard of living but they also actively contribute to the growth of the economy. 

Mentioned below are some of the various reasons why entrepreneurship is extremely important and is highly encouraged by the Indian government. 

Creates Job Opportunities 

It’s no secret that entrepreneurship greatly contributes to increasing job opportunities in the country. Moreover, as they provide entry-level jobs, it creates a great benefit of unskilled workers to get trained and gained experience. 

Hence, entrepreneurial ventures essentially prepare and enhance the skills of the workforce for large industries. 

The Social Impact 

Most entrepreneurs are ‘givers.’ They have struggled and worked hard to attain success, and hence, try to make the life of others easier. For example, many seasoned entrepreneurs regularly nurture other upcoming business ventures to help them in their journey. Not only does this help the young businesses, but it also gives the seasoned entrepreneurs a chance to extend their own ventures. 

Additionally, they also invest in various community projects and provide financial support to charities. 

The most famous entrepreneurs who have made a huge social impact are Bill Gates, Azim Premji, Warren Buffet, and Manoj Padaiyachi. 

Boosts The Economy 

When new products and services are introduced in the market through entrepreneurship, a cascading effect takes place. This causes related businesses and sectors an opportunity to grow, thereby boosting economic development. 

For example, in the 1990s, just a few information technology companies comprised of the entire IT industry in India. However, the industry quickly expanded, which not only benefited the IT industry, but other sectors as well, like call center operations, network maintenance companies, and hardware providers. Moreover, education and training institutes too flourished as they launched a new class for IT workers, who could attain higher-paying jobs after completing these classes. 

Increases The Standard of Living 

The definition of the standard of living concept is the ability to consume an amount of a variety of goods and services by a household, which is gauged over a period of time. The more the number of goods the household is able to afford, the higher their standard of living. 

Through entrepreneurship, people get job opportunities, which increases their standard of living as they are more capable of consuming the available goods and services. 

However, besides just individual earning, which also plays a huge role in increase the standard of living is the availability of diversified products in the market. Through innovation and a drive to launch something new, entrepreneurship provides the market with multiple new and improved products and services that can help improve their standard of life. 

Hence, there’s no doubt that entrepreneurship increases the standard of living of the people of a country. 

Encourages Innovation

There is no argument that innovation is the crux of entrepreneurship. No matter the industry, product or service, or market, without innovation and creativity, any entrepreneurial venture cannot be successful. 

Hence, with new ventures, products, technologies, markets, increased quality of goods, and others that are a product of innovation and entrepreneurship, the Gross Domestic Product increases considerably as it has a positive impact on the economy. 

Related – A Brief Analysis of NEP 2020 And How It Will Impact The Scope of Entrepreneurship In India

Why Millennials Prefer Entrepreneurship in India Over Traditional working 

Millennials have entered the workforce in an age that is ruled by the products of entrepreneurs, includes Steve Jobs, Dhirubhai Ambani, Azim Premji, and many others. Moreover, shows like Shark Tank, wherein aspirational and potential entrepreneurs are given a chance to succeed garner audiences of over 6 million from all over the globe. 

In addition to this, in the 2008 recession, the stability of traditional career paths came into question. Hence, it’s no surprise that millennials prefer entrepreneurship over traditional working. Mentioned below are some of the main reasons for this change in career approach and preferences in the new generation.  

Independence Over The C-Suite 

In today’s day and age, very few millennials proclaim their career goals to be climbing the corporate ladder of a corporation or to be part of their C-Suite, which includes positions like CEO, CFO, COO, and others. Instead, this young generation is more interested in building their own business and donning the founder cap, instead. 

The primary cause for this shift in career goals is essential that millennials are eager to forge their own pathway as they suspect that their efforts will lead to nothing in the traditional ones. Moreover, they tend to see chaos, distrust of management, breaking of contracts and bad news when it comes to being employed at a company. After all, they have seen their relatives get fired out of the blue, or their peers spend their entire lives locked in a cubicle. 

Hence, they tend to go down the challenging yet fulfilling path of entrepreneurship instead of playing by the rules of traditional working. 

Flexibility Over the 9-to-5 Jobs 

Millennials love their independence and love to work during hours they deem most productive. According to a study, 77% of millennials states that flexible work hours are key to boosting productivity in their generation. While some companies see the benefits of providing employees with flexible hours, most of them believe that this will hamper work ethics and professionalism.

Hence, millennials turn to entrepreneurship wherein they determine the best time to work and are often successful and more productive. This has become easier considering we are living in the age of smartphones, hence, millennials are “always-on,” with many checking their emails outside of work or lazing around the entire day and working in the night when they are most productive. 

Prefer an Adventiours life

In the words of a fellow millennial entrepreneur, Vivekananda Hallekere, who co-founded Bounce, “Millennials are a different breed of humans, who believe in knowing and exploring things on their own. They don’t like to own things, be it a home or a car. Settling down is not much of an option for them which means they take and are more ready to fight risks. And this is helpful for the startup ecosystem.”

Also Read – Why Every Entrepreneur Needs A Mentor 

5 Traits That Ignite Entrepreneurship In Individuals 

In the entrepreneurial world, success isn’t defined by the grades you got in school or how many degrees you have. Contrary to popular belief you don’t need to be a scholar or an A-student to be a successful entrepreneur. In fact, the best entrepreneurs are considered to be more street smart than book smart. 

Neither is success in this world defined by who your parents are, your religion or where you grew up. All that matters is your personality, mindset, skillset, and lastly your outlook on life. 

The two primary personality traits you must have to be a successful entrepreneur are perception and intuition, as a success only comes to those who are able to see an opportunity and have the ability to grasp on to it. 

Think you may have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? Here are five other personality traits entrepreneurs must have:

Money cannot be a driving force for an entrepreneur to succeed. Money can be made from more conventional practices that involved lesser effort, minimal risks and challenges. To be able to endure all the hardships that come with the entrepreneurial lifestyle, you must love what you do and be extremely passionate about your product or service. 

Being an entrepreneur involves rigorous effort, multiple sleepless nights and uncountable risks, especially in the initial stages. But, true entrepreneurs don’t fret about any of these challenges as they are so focused on their dream and vision. 

They don’t give up when a challenge arises, instead, they face the storm and stick with their dream and passion. A great example of this Steve Jobs, who said, “I’m convinced that about half of what separates the successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance.”

Solution-Driven 

When you’re working in a traditional workplace, you always have the option to look to your superiors or peer to help you when you’re stuck with a problem. Entrepreneurs mostly don’t have this liberty, hence, they need to be extremely solution-driven if they want to overcome the challenges they are facing. 

In his book, “Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don’t,” motivational speaker Simon Sinek writes, “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”

Essentially, a true entrepreneur knows how to solve a problem and motivate their team to work together toward a common goal. 

Most startups fail due one primary reason; lack of focus and a mission. It’s probable that after you launch your first venture, you might lose hope and feel that your business will never take off. However, successful entrepreneurs don’t feel that. Not only are they optimistic about the future and are always looking ahead, but they also have a definite path and plan in place for their business. 

In his essay “Thoughts on Various Subjects,” Jonathan Swift wrote, “Vision is the art of seeing things invisible.” Entrepreneurs have a vision and mission they share with others. Their team understands why they do what they do, what the goal is and what their role is on the path to success.

Their mindset and creativity are what sets great entrepreneurs apart from everyone else. They have a knack for seeing the world differently and are able to think outside the box. By thinking this way, they are able to come up with great ideas, which are then executed in the form of products or services. 

In “Conversations with Maya Angelou,” Jeffrey M. Elliot quoted Maya Angelou as saying, “You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.”

Entrepreneurs always need to be on the lookout for a new and efficient way of doing things, and how they can make existing products better. They shouldn’t be satisfied with the status quo and should be creative enough to be able to come up with ideas that change the world. 

The lifestyle of an entrepreneur can be extremely tricky. While you need to essentially run the entire company and carry out multiple roles and responsibilities, you also need to ensure you’re maintaining a healthy work-life balance. 

It’s easy to get lost in the complexities of growing your business and forget about your personal life and health. However, this is not a healthy or scalable practice. Hence, you must chalk out a plan to ensure you’re spending sufficient time with your company, and with your family and loved ones. Flexible hours are great, but ensure you are able to shut off from work and take a breather once a while. 

Moreover, you need to take the utmost care of you health as your business is entirely dependent on you and if you are unwell, there will be no one to replace you to drive your company forward. 

Related –  Motivational Quotes for Entrepreneurs to Ignite their Inspiration

Are You The Next Big Thing In The Entrepreneurial World of India?

With multiple government policies and many successful entrepreneurs to consider as role models, there is no shortage of support you will receive if you decide to go down the entrepreneurial role. 

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Further reading

Sneaker Crates by Top Budding Start-Ups

30+ Unicorn Startups in India you Need to Know

15 Influential & Successful Women Entrepreneurs in India

16 Daily Habits of Great Leaders

WhistleDrive -Transforming the way Urban Cities Move!

Vidsaga – From Failure to Fruition of Becoming a global marketplace to create Videos!

The Nessco India – The Story Of Two Brothers Transforming Local Dealership to Global Business

A Troubled Startup To A Million-Dollar Company: The Success Story of Urban Ladder

BidWheelz, From Dreaming to become an Entrepreneur to actually being one – Nakul Khandelwal

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Budgetary Boost to Deep Tech Innovations & Entrepreneurship

O/o psa communications team.

Honourable Union Finance Minister, Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman delivered the Interim Budget 2024 Speech today. The comprehensive text of the Finance Minister’s speech is accessible here . In this blog, we curate excerpts from her speech that specifically focus on Science, Technology, and Innovation in India :

Research and Innovation for catalyzing growth, employment and development

Prime Minister Shastri gave the slogan of “Jai Jawan Jai Kisan”. Prime Minister Vajpayee made that “Jai Jawan Jai Kisan Jai Vigyan”. Prime Minister Modi has furthered that to “Jai Jawan Jai Kisan Jai Vigyan and Jai Anusandhan”, as innovation is the foundation of development.

For our tech savvy youth, this will be a golden era. 
A corpus of rupees one lakh crore will be established with
fifty-year interest free loan. The corpus will provide long-term financing or refinancing with long tenors and low or nil interest rates. This will encourage the private sector to scale up research and innovation significantly in sunrise domains. We need to have programmes that combine the powers of our youth and technology.

A new scheme will be launched for strengthening 
deep-tech technologies for defence purposes and expediting ‘atmanirbharta’.

Technological Changes

New age technologies and data are changing the lives of people and businesses. They are also enabling new economic opportunities and facilitating provision of high-quality services at affordable prices for all, including those at ‘bottom of the pyramid’. Opportunities for India at the global level are expanding. India is showing solutions through innovation and entrepreneurship of its people.

Green Energy

Towards meeting our commitment for ‘net-zero’ by 2070, the following measures will be taken.

Viability gap funding will be provided for harnessing offshore wind energy potential for initial capacity of one giga-watt.

Coal gasification and liquefaction capacity of 100 MT will be set up by 2030. This will also help in reducing imports of natural gas, methanol, and ammonia.

Phased mandatory blending of compressed biogas (CBG) in compressed natural gas (CNG) for transport and piped natural gas (PNG) for domestic purposes will be mandated.

Financial assistance will be provided for procurement of biomass aggregation machinery to support collection.

Electric Vehicle Ecosystem

Our Government will expand and strengthen the e-vehicle ecosystem by supporting manufacturing and charging infrastructure. Greater adoption of e-buses for public transport networks will be encouraged through payment security mechanism.

The Government of India established the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) in November 1999. The PSA's office aims to provide pragmatic and objective advice to the Prime Minister and the cabinet in matters of Science and Technology.

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Women Entrepreneurs Shaping the Future of India

• Jan 04, 2022, 14:28

Introduction

Women entrepreneurs and their increasing presence in India have significantly influenced the social and economic demographics of the country. The participation of women in the labour force has helped millions of families to pull out of poverty and has led to job creation. Women are well known for their leadership skills and hence dominate in new-age industries such as electronic manufacturing , where more than 50% of the employees are women because of their high-precision work and better productivity levels. This attitude towards work and commendable business skills have also emphasised the importance of women in the modern workforce.

Role of Women in India's Economy

In India 20.37% of women are MSME owners which account for 23.3% of the labour force. They are considered to be the backbone of the economy. According to McKinsey Global, India can potentially add US$ 700 billion to global GDP by increasing women’s participation in the labour force. The percentage of women working in the manufacturing and agriculture sectors is higher than that of men. These sectors are usually credited with helping families come out of poverty and contributing to higher household income. Moreover, literacy rates among women grew at 8.8% in FY21, which further highlights the bright prospects of the country.

Women-led Business Impact

Women-led businesses provide a great impetus to the economy. India has 432 million working-age women and 13.5 –15.7 million women-owned businesses that provide direct employment to 22–27 million people. In addition, a number of businesses are being controlled by women. Indian women are independent and have a strong motivation to start their own business. According to Boston Consulting Group, start-ups founded or co-founded by women generate 10% more cumulative revenue over a five-year period. These start-ups have a more inclusive work culture and employ 3x more women than men. Moreover, women-led businesses are estimated to grow 90% in the next five years.

Factors Driving Women to Start Businesses or Join Workforce

Women entrepreneurs are empowering 50% of India’s start-up ecosystem, driven by:

• Recognition : Recognition in the form of admiration, regard, esteem and renown motivates women entrepreneurs. According to a survey by Bain & Company, more than 45% of Indian women in rural areas were driven to start a business for gaining recognition.
• Results : Women-led start-ups provide 35% higher ROI compared to those led by men. This ability to generate more returns encourages women to start their own businesses.
• Fulfilling unmet needs : The inherent need in women to provide for the family is a key factor. As they make 85% of purchase decisions, the need to provide a better lifestyle motivates women.
• Education : India ranks among the top worldwide for producing female graduates in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) industry, with as many as 40% of women graduating from this field. Indian women are game changers in the fields of science and technology.

Women-run Businesses Operate Efficiently

Businesses that have women at the helm are considered to run very efficiently, and some of the compelling reasons to invest in a such a business are:

• Higher return potential : Businesses led by women require less investment but generate higher net revenue. For every dollar invested, women-led start-ups provide 78 cents return compared to 31 cents by men-led start-ups.
• Multi-tasking : Women are great multi-taskers as majority of them juggle multiple things at once. These women could prove highly valuable in generating various income streams and helping to nurture start-ups. As per a survey conducted by psychologists at the University of Hertfordshire, When women and men were given two tasks at the same time, women slowed by 61%, whereas men slowed by 77%.
• High risk appetite : Women entrepreneurs are known to take more risks, as per a survey taken by KPMG 43% of women are willing to take more risks. Moreover, women are found to be better than men at envisioning opportunities.
• Adaptability and higher EQ : Women have a dynamic ability to adapt. A survey conducted by Bain & Company, Google and AWE Foundation of 350 women solopreneurs and small company owners in urban India found that companies run by women founders were resilient and fast to adapt. The results also showed that women also had a higher emotional quotient (EQ).

Major Businesses Run by Women in India

In India, 45% of the start-ups are run by women, of which over 50,000 are recognised by the government. The country witnessed the most women-led start-ups turning into unicorns in 2021. Major start-ups run by women are listed below.

Government Initiatives to Encourage Women Participation

The Indian government has increased the budget for Women and Child Development by 14% in 2021. It has set aside over Rs. 30,000 crores (US$ 3.97 billion) in FY21. This budgetary allocation also includes various development schemes as listed below.

• Bharatiya Mahila Bank Business Loan

This type of business loan was set up in 2017 to help women access cheap loans and dream big despite their lack of resources. The scheme provides loans of over Rs. 20 crores (US$ 2.46 million) for women entrepreneurs. A collateral-free loan can also be availed of for loans worth less than Rs. 1 crore (US$ 0.13 million).

• Dena Shakti Scheme

This scheme was launched for women entrepreneurs looking to start their business in certain sectors such as agriculture, retail and manufacturing. The scheme provides loans at an interest rate that is 0.25% below the base rate. The maximum loan application is Rs. 20 lakhs (US$ 26,468).

• Udyogini Scheme

This scheme is for women with an annual income of Rs. 1.5 lakh (US$ 1,985). It provides loans of up to Rs. 3 lakh (US$ 3,890) for women wanting to start a business but have no capital.

• Women Entrepreneurship Platform

This is a flagship platform started by NITI Aayog to promote women entrepreneurship. The platform hosts various workshops and educational events to motivate women to start their own business.

• Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana

Even though the scheme was started to help anyone looking to set up a micro/small enterprise get an institutional credit of up to Rs. 10 lakhs (US$ 13,240), it was mostly availed of by women.

Source: (indiaeducationdiary.in)

India was a country where a woman even owning a bank account was considered a major benchmark. However, it currently has over 15.7 million women-owned enterprises, with women leading the start-up ecosystem. This drastic transformation clearly underlines the potential of Indian women and their determination. In the coming decades, India is set to witness a major shift, with women dominating the workforce as well as shaping and enhancing the future of the country. It is estimated that over 30 million more women-owned businesses are expected to provide 150–170 million jobs by 2030. This could be a game changer and help the economic outlook look brighter than ever.

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The Rise of Indian Entrepreneurs: A Reality Check

Why in News?

• Atmanirbhar Bharat , or a self-reliant India, is  among the most prominent stated goals  of the present government.
• Recently a  report was released by Capital Group which highlighted nine factors  that made “India appealing compared with other emerging markets.”
• Amidst all these reports and government’s policies it is  imperative to understand the correct employment picture.  

The Vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat (Self-Reliant India)

• The idea is that the country will achieve self-reliance in a whole host of economic activities.
• An associated idea, pushed forward by the government, has been  to convince people that they should not look towards the government for an official job.
• The Indian government has long sought to boost domestic entrepreneurship.
• The current dispensation has consistently pushed for the private sector to take the lead in creating jobs.
• A necessary corollary of such growth would be  the rise of entrepreneurship in India .

Select Government Schemes to Support Entrepreneurship in India

• This scheme was launched to promote and support startups in India by providing them with funding, tax benefits, and other incentives.
• It also provides legal and regulatory support and helps startups to network and collaborate with investors, mentors, and other entrepreneurs.
• This scheme provides financial assistance to small and micro enterprises, including startups, through loans of up to INR 10 lakhs.
• The scheme has been designed to cater to the financial requirements of startups and small businesses in the country.
• This scheme was launched to promote entrepreneurship among women and SC/ST entrepreneurs.
• Under this scheme, loans of up to INR 1 crore are provided to eligible entrepreneurs to start or expand their businesses.
• AIM is a government initiative that aims to promote innovation and entrepreneurship in the country.
• The mission provides funding, mentorship, and other support to startups and entrepreneurs working on innovative ideas.
• The EDF is a fund set up by the government to provide financial assistance to startups and small businesses working in the electronics and IT sectors.
• The fund provides equity, debt, and other forms of funding to eligible companies.

Current Employment Picture

• The government has argued that due to key reforms,  India is witnessing a surge in domestic entrepreneurs.
• However, reports suggests that  India’s labour market experiences considerable joblessness and a general lack of employment  opportunities despite a significant GDP growth rate.
• The Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) released data that suggests  most of the new jobs created in the form of self-employment.

Where and How Indians Work?

• According to CMIE,  the total employment in India in January-April 2023 stood at 412.9 million.
• This is  8.6 million more than what it was before the pandemic  (that is, during January-April 2019).
• The total employed people can be further categorised into several other categories.
• However, there are four main categories;  business; salaried; small traders & wage labourers; and farmers.
• The  bulk of Indians work either as farmers or as wage labourers  or small traders. The third biggest category is the salaried class. The fourth-biggest category is the so-called “business” class or “entrepreneurs”.
• Moreover, there is only one category that has actually recovered to the pre-pandemic level. That is those employed in “business” of some kind.
• All other types of employment are  still below the pre-pandemic number.
• The number of people categorised under “business” grew by 8.4 million between the last four years.

Is the Entrepreneurship on the Rise?

• At one level, the fact that employment is soaring within the “business” category can be seen as heartening news.
• It can give a sense that  India’s economy is creating the right kind of incentives for the private sector  to come out and reach for their dreams — that India is the new land of opportunities for entrepreneurs.
• However, a  detailed examination of the data within the “business” category is necessary to present the correct picture.  

Detailed Examination of the Data Within the Business Category

• This includes those people who set up large businesses that leverage capital and humans to run them.
• They manage some fixed premises such as an office, shop, workshop, factory, etc.
• Qualified self-employed professionals : This category includes people who run their own professional enterprises and leverage their own expertise, such as doctors, lawyers, consultants, professional chartered accountants, etc.
• Self-employed
• This category refers to those “entrepreneurs” who run their own business enterprises but these enterprises do not leverage much financial capital, human capital, or even professional skills.
• For example,  taxi drivers, barbers, beauticians, estate agents, brokers, insurance agents, models, astrologers, etc.

Reality of the Rise in Entrepreneurship

• Self-employed entrepreneurs accounted for the largest share,  at around 70-80 per cent of all the entrepreneurs in India.
• The second largest share was that of businessmen, comprising around 15-20 per cent of the total business persons in the country.
• Qualified self-employed professionals accounted for a mere 1-2 per cent.
• According to CMIE, this composition has changed considerably since 2016, from when CMIE started releasing its employment data.
• The  share of businessmen fell substantially and was offset by an equal rise in the share of self-employed entrepreneurs.
• Data shows that at the macro level, what is often considered to be the business class — the  well-to-do entrepreneur — has seen a decline .
• More importantly,  the actual rise of Indian entrepreneurs is happening in the self-employment category , which reflects poorly on the economic conditions.
• It is likely that this shift in the composition of employment in India does not indicate an increase in real entrepreneurship but is merely a reflection of poor employment opportunities in the economy.
• Reforms and policies brought in by the government has set the stage for the growth. But as of now,  the reality appears to be different from expectations and various reports.

Q1) What is the Start-Up India scheme?

Launched on 16th January, 2016, the Startup India Initiative has rolled out several programs to support building a robust startup ecosystem and transforming India into a country of job creators instead of job seekers. These programs are managed by a dedicated Startup India Team, which reports to the Department for Industrial Policy and Promotion (DPIIT).

Q2) How does the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme aim to help entrepreneurs?

 Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) aims to provide financial assistance to startups for proof of concept, prototype development, product trials, market entry and commercialisation. This would enable these startups to graduate to a level where they will be able to raise investments from angel investors or venture capitalists or seek loans from commercial banks or financial institutions.

Source:  The Indian Express

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Speech: “Women entrepreneurs can drive economic growth”—Lakshmi Puri

Date: Monday, 17 July 2017

Mr. Jack Ma, Founder and Executive Chairman of Alibaba Group Ms. Zhang Wei, Alibaba Pictures President Dr. Jim Yong Kim, President of the World Bank Group Honorable Bardish Chagger, Minister of Small Business and Tourism of Canada Dear friends,

I want to express my deepest appreciation to Mr. Jack Ma, chair of the Alibaba Group and the Alibaba team at large for the invitation to speak at this SHE·ERA: 2017 Global Conference on Women and Entrepreneurship. Jack Ma and his team’s leadership is to be commended for convening such a monumental conference, bringing the attention of the world to a pathbreaking SHE-ERA that transforms the globe through sustained investment in and support to women’s economic empowerment. We thank you again for your unconditional and solid support to UN Women. We need more leaders like you in the world.

You have brought together an impressive lineup of champions of gender equality and women's empowerment with a focus on one of the key drivers of GEWE - women's entrepreneurship. I bring you the greetings of Madame Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, UN Women’s Executive Director. I would also like to convey the support of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. Antonio Guterres, who is a true Gender Champion and supports all such initiatives that strengthen the global movement for gender equality!

Jack Ma and Alibaba partnership with UN Women

We commend your leadership Mr. Ma and you have been a pioneer in:

• Forging a transformative partnership with UN Women since the historic first ever Gender Equality Summit with nearly 70 heads of States and governments, co-hosted by China and UN Women in 2015 where you spoke on behalf of the private sector.
• Launching a Private Sector Forum for supporting UN Women and contributing to the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 5 on achieving gender equality and empowering all women and girls.
• Financing our core institutional capacity especially on women's economic empowerment and women's entrepreneurship.

We continue to count on your support and on your inspiration for other private sector leaders in China and the world to join this movement of a socially accountable and gender responsive private sector who thinks and acts and impacts gender equality in their companies, in the market place and in the community.

Your quote last year, “women are the ‘secret sauce’ behind your company’s success,” continues to resonate, Mr. Ma, as a loud and clear invitation to the private sector leaders everywhere to emulate your employment practices and a gender equality and women's empowerment focused business model.

You have demonstrated that your quest for gender balance in the management and workforce of the company is achievable, that it empowers women as managers, traders, suppliers, producers and consumers and that this in turn generates and drives the exponential growth of your business.

We are convinced that women entrepreneurs can drive economic growth, but only if they are enabled to realize their rights and if we work in partnership with business, government and civil society to improve their opportunities and outcomes in global value chains. And this is what this conference is about.

Our deliberations for the next two days will contribute to strengthen the message that gender equality and women’s empowerment is the most important undertaking for our societies, economies and the international community as we enter a new and defining time for sustainable and inclusive development and peace and security with women’s leadership as a key driver.

The Essence of women's economic empowerment

Women’s economic empowerment is one of the world’s most promising areas of investment, biggest emerging markets, talent pools and demographic dividends to be tapped.

And when we speak of women’s economic empowerment we refer to women's economic rights including equal access to, ownership of and control over land, property, productive assets and resources including finance and capacity building and access on an equal basis as men to decent work and full and productive employment; their economic independence or full ability to freely assert their autonomy and exercise their choices; and their full access to decision making in all economic decisions that affect their lives and the lives of their families, communities and societies.

These three aspects of empowerment must be recognized and promoted as an integrated whole. If one aspect fails, the full empowerment cannot be realized and the whole sustainable development future is jeopardized.

Women's economic empowerment generates tremendous dividends for the society- Let me share some examples:

If women and men have the equal access to land, technology, financial services, education and markets, the consequent 20-30 per cent increase in agricultural production on women’s farms could lead to 100-150 million less hungry people.

If women participate in economic activity, own and control productive assets, it leads to development by helping to overcome poverty, reducing inequality and improving children’s nutrition, health, and school attendance.

If female employment were to match male employment, GDP could increase everywhere, for example, by 27 per cent in the Middle East and North Africa and by 19 per cent in South Asia.

If women and men stood on identical footing in terms of participation in the economy through paid work and entrepreneurship, the world could see as much as 28 trillion dollars in global growth by 2025- imagine that it would be the GDP of US and China put together!

There is growing global consensus on women’s economic empowerment as a force multiplier for good governance, economic growth, poverty eradication, ending hunger and achieving food security and nutrition, achieving sustainable consumption and production patterns and environmental sustainability, and SDG achievement overall.

Indeed, gender equality and women’s empowerment are integral to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in September 2015. As a universal call to action for all stakeholders, including in business, government, youth and civil society, the Agenda articulates priorities for joint efforts, so that all women and men, including young women, can share the benefits of economic growth and development, with no one left behind.

Market forces and enabling and special measures.

However, we can never lose sight of the fact that efforts to promote women’s economic empowerment require that market-based approaches and economic gains and incentives must go hand in hand with creating a deliberate ecosystem that enables women to realize their rights and level the capacity and opportunity playing field. This means governments and the private sector taking special measures. This is because historically systematic discrimination against women constrains their full and equal participation in the economy.

Entrepreneurship and decent work are the bedrocks of economic empowerment. They support the economic empowerment of women and men, families, communities, and countries. The Addis Ababa Action Agenda on Financing for Development and 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development recognize the importance of entrepreneurship and decent work, specifically in Goal 8.3, “Promote development-oriented policies that support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, and encourage the formalization and growth of micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises, including through access to financial services.”

The agenda further elaborates on the criticality of women’s economic empowerment through other sustainable development goals (SDGs), particularly:

• SDG4 on Education (target 4.4)
• SDG5 (target 5.a and b)
• SDG8 on Economic growth and employment
• SDG17 (target 17.17) on Global partnership

It is recognized that just entrepreneurship alone fuels the creation of decent jobs and builds wealth when businesses thrive and grow. In China, if women started successful growth-oriented businesses as men do, it is estimated that 74 million more jobs could be created.

Global perspective on women and entrepreneurship

I will start by discussing some of the common structural barriers women entrepreneurs face and outline some of the solutions, drawing especially on the recommendations of the UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Women’s Economic Empowerment and our own work in global norm and standard setting, strategic partnership and advocacy, knowledge hub and operational work Finally, I will highlight concrete areas where UN Women is working to make a difference.

Structural Barriers to women’s entrepreneurship

A number of constraints on women’s entrepreneurship lead to unequal economic opportunities and outcomes compared to men. They are rooted in structural barriers and discriminatory laws and social and cultural norms and stereotypes that limit the realization of women’s rights and treat women as inferior and subordinate to men including in the productive economy. The World Bank estimates that in 155 out of 173 economies, at least one gender-based legal restriction exists on women's employment and entrepreneurship.

As a result, there is increased feminization of poverty, pervasive gender disparities in wealth and income from work – which includes both paid employment and self-employment and women entrepreneurship. Furthermore, these constraints are linked to poverty, ethnicity, race, disability, rural and remote location and status, resulting in multiple and intersecting economic marginalization for many women.

Major areas of gender inequalities in the economy include women’s predominance in the informal economy, occupational segregation, discrimination in the entire recruitment, retention, promotion and reentry chain in formal employment, gender pay gaps, lack of assets, unequal and inadequate access to productive resources, capacity building and finance and a heavy and disproportionate burden of unpaid care and domestic work and sexual harassment at the workplace.

Some 70 per cent of women workers are employed or self-employed in informal jobs, which are insecure, unprotected and poorly paid.

Occupational segregation by gender means that women are still overwhelmingly clustered in low-paid, poor-quality jobs- sticky floor phenomenon. The most pernicious impact of segregation is pervasive gender pay gaps, which mean that women are systematically paid less than men for work of equal value. The global gender pay gap stands at 23 per cent.

One cause of occupational segregation is the expectation that women are the primary care-givers for families. Care work is seen separated from formal economic activities, and is not remunerated. Globally, women spend an average of 2.5 times more time on unpaid care work compared to men.

It is well recognized that the time women spend on unpaid care work constrains the time available to dedicate to paid work activities, the types of work in which they engage, and their earning potential.

Another major structural barrier is women’s lack of access to productive assets – often dictated by laws on inheritance and property rights – which means that women have less collateral to raise capital to invest in a business. As result women remain in sectors with low barriers to entry and limited growth potential.

Although women-owned enterprises have been the target of microfinance interventions, there has been a dearth of activity supporting “the missing middle,” or mezzo-level financing for women-owned small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with high growth potential. For example, only about 14 to 19 percent of International Financial Corporation loans are issued to women-owned SME clients, despite evidence that they perform just as well as those owned by men!!

Breaking the glass ceilings and glass walls through entrepreneurship and innovation: Solutions based on recommendations of the High-Level Panel

Recognizing that advancing women’s economic empowerment is a global imperative and its catalytic potential in achieving the SDGs, the UN Secretary-General established the High-Level Panel (HLP) on Women’s Economic Empowerment in 2016 and President Kim is a distinguished member of the Panel.

The panel identified seven primary drivers of women’s economic empowerment which apply to women's entrepreneurship as a key means and made recommendations thereon calling for:

• Tackling adverse norms and promoting positive role models
• Ensuring legal protection and reforming discriminatory laws and regulations
• Recognizing, reducing and redistributing and provisioning unpaid care and domestic work
• Building assets—Digital, financial and property
• Changing business and private sector culture and practice
• Improving public sector practices in employment and procurement
• Strengthening visibility, collective voice and representation

UN Women is working to address these drivers and implement the recommendations of the High-Level Panel through its flagship programming initiatives.

Procurement as a key driver of women's entrepreneurship

For example, one of the key drivers the Panel identified was leveraging procurement to create economic opportunities for women-owned businesses as suppliers to governments, international organizations and corporations which procure goods and services from companies to carry out their functions.

Whether these entities are delivering health services, building a road, or manufacturing a product, smaller private sector companies are involved as suppliers. Public procurement alone accounts for 15 to 30 per cent of GDP in countries. This creates market opportunities that have long been recognized as an engine for growth in SMEs, yet women-owned enterprises are severely underrepresented as suppliers, securing only an estimated 1 per cent of contracts .

The SG's UN Panel estimates that even a 1 per cent increase in the share of procurement would result in 60-70 billion dollars in revenues for women-owned businesses. This is equivalent to the economy of countries like Cambodia, Costa Rica or Tanzania… a great deal we have in hand!!

It recommends that governments establish and track government-wide targets for women’s participation in procurement and encourage suppliers to do the same. Women-owned enterprises and women’s collectives should furthermore be trained on how to do business with government.

Corporations are also well positioned to promote gender equality and empower women in their workplaces, in their communities, and through purchasing policies and practices. The sheer size and volume of corporate purchasing worldwide means that corporations have the power to dramatically influence the way suppliers and supply chains operate.

By overlooking women-owned businesses, many corporations are missing an opportunity to expand their global markets, diversify and upgrade their supply chains, grow the economy, and increase the purchasing power of women consumers while simultaneously improving the lives of women and girls around the globe. Alibaba group is seizing these opportunities and kudos to you for that. You have made e-commerce a powerful vehicle of women's entrepreneurship and empowerment.

UN Women’s Transformative Programming

Women’s economic empowerment is at the core of UN Women’s priority areas. Working with a variety of partners, our programmes around the world and specifically in 75 countries on the ground seek to promote women’s ability to secure decent jobs, accumulate assets, and influence institutions and public policies determining growth and development. Our aims are higher incomes, better access to and control over resources, and greater security, including protection from violence.

One critical area of focus involves promoting women’s entrepreneurship, with a particular target on reaching out to women most in need, often by engaging with grass-roots and civil society organizations. Particularly marginalized groups include rural women, domestic workers, refugees and migrants, disabled and low-skilled women. At the global corporate level our advocacy seeks to influence gender parity in the Boards and management of companies and for them to join the Women's Empowerment Principles.

Some examples:

Since 2013, UN Women has facilitated EmpowerWomen.org , an innovative online knowledge, engagement and learning platform on women’s economic empowerment. It has made available over 2,500 documents and videos, 850 stories, 2,600 discussions, 500 events and opportunities and 220 organizations showcasing their work.

Empower Women has grown into a global movement with more than a million viewers and over 20,000 passionate and ambitious women and men contributing from the private sector, civil society, academia, governments and international organizations from more than 190 countries.

As part of our strategy to drive industry-wide action in the area of gender equality and innovation, UN Women is creating a collective action platform called the Global Innovation Coalition for Change (GICC) to be launched later this year. The GICC is a dynamic partnership between UN Women and key representatives from the private sector, academia and not for profit institutions focused on developing the innovation market to work better for women and accelerate the achievement of gender equality and women’s empowerment. The GICC will focus on market awareness of the potential for innovations that meet the needs of women and innovations that are developed by women and identify key actions to address their needs and remove barriers at an industry wide level.

Another example of UN Women’s transformative power is its “Women’s Entrepreneurship in Gender Responsive Procurement” flagship programme to generate opportunities for women entrepreneurs, so that they can earn sustainable income, create jobs, and drive sustainable, inclusive economic growth. UN Women released a guide this year for corporations to practice gender-responsive procurement, called “The Power of Procurement: How to Source from Women-Owned Businesses.”

The work includes conducting gender assessments that analyze the opportunities and barriers for women entrepreneurs, identifying strategic sectors in which to focus, and supporting the development of financial services that meet the unique needs of women-business owners.

As part of our flagship program “Women’s Entrepreneurship in Gender Responsive Procurement,” we will be creating opportunities for substantial impact in this area. For example, in December, the Women’s Economic Empowerment Summit to be held in Sharjah, UAE, and will feature activities to boost the capacity of both buyers and sellers to interact, negotiate and do business and bring investors and entrepreneurs together to explore avenues for partnership.

Also, promoting young women’s economic empowerment and skills development is a key pillar in UN Women’s Youth and Gender Equality Strategy. On World Youth Skills Day, 15 July 2016, UN Women launched the Global Coalition of Young Women Entrepreneurs to promote young women’s innovation and entrepreneurship and provide a platform for exchange between leading young women entrepreneurs, stakeholders and advocates, as well as men and boys who can also play an important role as partners and allies. The coalition will work to generate a Knowledge Toolbox for advancing young women entrepreneur’s skills and share best practices, to then be adopted by countries world over.

All these and the many UN Women programmes on the ground that have empowered millions of women economically have benefitted from the precious partnership between UN Women and Alibaba! Long live that partnership! 

Call to Action

At this conference, I would like to call upon all stakeholders from government, business and civil society to engage in collective actions to:

• Foster an enabling business and financial climate for women entrepreneurs
• Eliminate structural barriers
• Take concrete actions through strategic policies and partnerships
• Create new and innovative opportunities for women-owned businesses to thrive and grow
• Leverage procurement as a powerful tool to drive transformative results

I want to take this opportunity to call upon you to convey a meeting of male business leaders to stand together on gender equality and women’s empowerment in China. I hope Mr. Jack Ma you can take the lead on this and it can be done early next year.

I call upon male business leaders around the world to be inspired by and be like Jack Ma, and be a real HeForShe who has inaugurated a true SHE-ERA for women and girls by creating ecosystems that transform families, communities, markets and societies by recognizing women as equal and powerful economic agents of change.

The ambition of achieving the sustainable development goals cannot be achieved without putting women in the center of our efforts. Their talent, vision, leadership and entrepreneurial spirit unleashed are quintessential to reaching the present and future women and girls want, need and deserve but also for a sustainable, peaceful and prosperous future for all of humanity.

Now I call upon all of you to join UN Women’s global call on achieving a

Planet 50-50 by 2030 and to Step it up for Gender Equality. 

Repeat after me,

Planet 50-50 by 2030: step it up for Gender equality 

Who will do it?

We will do it.

Will we get there?

We will get there.

With visionaries and champions like all of you we are better positioned to keep this tryst with our gender equal destiny within a generation and not wait another century!

I thank you.

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Insuretech GCC Zinnia Bets Big on India for Tech Talent, Innovation Zinnia is a product and technology organisation that is focussed on simplifying insurance. India is home to more than half of its total workforce of about 3,000.

By Ayushman Baruah Oct 30, 2024

You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.

Zinnia India, the global capability center (GCC) of American insuretech player Zinnia, is betting big on India to capitalize on the country's technology talent and drive innovation from here for the world.

Zinnia is a product and technology organisation that is focussed on simplifying insurance. "One of the challenges historically in insurance is monolithic platforms that are not easy to use, not easy to mine data or update and change. So, we have built a new system of record using blockchain that will allow us to transfer risk easily between parties. Then we have built capabilities on top that doesn't require you to change monolithic platforms but just connect your existing platforms and provide state-of-the-art UI/UX capabilities," Josh Everett, CEO, Zinnia India told Entrepreneur India .

Zinnia in India has about 1,600 employees, more than half of its total workforce of about 3,000. It plans to hire hundreds in the next few months as it ramps up operations in the country.

It has centers in nine locations in India – Gurugram, Noida, Chennai, Coimbatore, Nagpur, Pune, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and most recently Bengaluru.

Zinnia is one of the few GCCs in India that have expanded to tier-II cities as part of its strategy to tap into the available talent pool and reduce costs. "Let's leverage the talent where it exists," Everett said.

"Currently we have 20 team members who are based out of our Bengaluru office. Most of the team members are from Engineering stream and few others are Quality Analysts and Quality Engineers. Our CTO Pawan Chaudhary and Talent Acquisition Head India are also two key team members who are based out of Bengaluru location," said Everett. "We are looking to hire the best talent here. We are looking for engineers who can help with our system of records, top UI/UX engineers, automation experts etc."

In terms of client base, 95 per cent of Zinnia's clients are based in North America and Canada and India is currently a small portion but growing. "In April this year, we acquired few products from Ebix through which we acquired five customers from India," Everett said.

A lot of Zinnia's global functions are driven out of India, a trend seen across many other GCCs in India. "We lead functions out of India. The most recent one we are leading out of India is called Global Operations, the back office processes for insurance carriers. We are leading innovation for the insurance industry out of India," he said.

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‘Hateful’, ‘venomous’: INDIA bloc writes to EC over Himanta’s speeches in Jharkhand

The letter, made public at a press conference saturday, reproduced parts of sarma’s speech to claim it was “stoking the flames of hatred and resentment” by using “venomous words” such as “infiltrators”..

Calling BJP Jharkhand election in-charge and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Sarma’s election speeches as “extremely divisive” and “hateful”, the INDIA bloc leaders have sought “immediate and strictest action” against him.

A letter, submitted to the Election Commission of India and the state’s chief electoral officer by the Rashtriya Janata Dal , the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist), the Congress and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), said that Himanta Sarma “targeted” Muslims at a public meeting and programme in Sarath on November 1.

In his speech, he purportedly said that “they” vote for the same party but “we vote half here and half there”.

The letter, made public at a press conference Saturday, reproduced parts of Sarma’s speech to claim it was “stoking the flames of hatred and resentment” by using “venomous words” such as “infiltrators”. It also flagged an interview in which he targeted Congress minority leaders and said in case the election body didn’t take action in the next 24 hours, they would move court.

“He has knowingly colouring all the people of a particular religious minority in one shade and portraying all of them to be infiltrators so as to exploit existing social divisions and exacerbate them for political gain and create communal tension and break the social fabric of the state of Jharkhand for electoral gains,” said the letter, demanding action to show that the “Commission does not stand by such actions of any person which can result in disturbing the process of free and fair elections”.

• Himanta Biswa Sarma
• Jharkhand Assembly Elections 2024
• Jharkhand assembly polls

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INDIA's 'Civil War' Charge On Himanta Sarma For Jharkhand Speech, His Reply

Assam chief minister himanta biswa sarma has trashed the allegations and said talking about hindus does not mean targeting muslims..

Himanta Biswa Sarma has been addressing rallies in poll-bound Jharkhand

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's remarks ahead of the Assembly polls in Jharkhand have sparked a massive row and leaders of the INDIA Opposition have registered a complaint with the state Chief Electoral Officer, seeking action against the BJP leader.

In its letter to the poll panel, the INDIA bloc accused Mr Sarma of targeting Muslims at a rally in Jharkhand's Sarath.

"His use of extremely divisive and hateful words in the speech targeting the Muslim minorities by saying words like 'Woh log ek hi jageh par vote daalte hain lekin humaara Hindu aadha vote idhar daalega aadha udhar (They will vote for the same person, but Hindus will not vote together)' and 'ye sarkar ghuspaithiya ko bulaata hai kyuki vishesh samudaay unko vote deta hai (This government calls infiltrators because a particular community votes for it)' are clear examples of the venomous language being used by him to create a civil war-like situation and incite violence in the ensuing assembly elections," the letter said.

#WATCH | #JharkhandAssemblyElections2024 | A delegation of INDIA Alliance, met Jharkhand's Chief Electoral Officer, Ravi Kumar, in Ranchi, to register their complaint, seeking action against Assam CM and BJP co-in-charge of Jharkhand, Himanta Biswa Sarma for his alleged… pic.twitter.com/Irh2vXNZS1 — ANI (@ANI) November 2, 2024

"This hate speech given by Mr Sarma is an example of the divisive politics being promoted by him and his party, the Bharatiya Janata Party" the letter said, accusing the BJP leader of trying to "polarise the electorate".

"He has knowingly coloured all the people of a particular religious minority in one shade and portrayed all of them to be infiltrators to exploit existing social divisions and exacerbate them for political gain create communal tension and break the social fabric of the state of Jharkhand for electoral gains," the INDIA bloc has said.

The Opposition leaders said they fear "extremist ideologies and hate crimes can happen as a direct result of the toxic environment created by such rhetoric of Himanta Biswa Sarma".

The Assam Chief Minister, who has been attending multiple rallies in Jharkhand, has trashed the allegations and said talking about Hindus does not mean targeting Muslims.

#WATCH | Assam CM and BJP co-in-charge of Jharkhand, Himanta Biswa Sarma says, "Why complain against me? What am I saying? Why they are hurt when I am speaking against the infiltrators? Where it is written, in which law, that it is wrong to speak against infiltrators?... Talking… https://t.co/gFpk3Mjurq pic.twitter.com/NBGoET3jFJ — ANI (@ANI) November 2, 2024

"Why complain against me? What am I saying? Why are they hurt when I am speaking against the infiltrators? Where is it written that it is wrong to speak against infiltrators? Should we open our doors to infiltrators? Talking about Hindus doesn't mean targeting Muslims. I don't even utter the word - Muslim. India is a Hindu civilisation and to talk about protecting them is a positive thing. Some Muslim leader may speak about protecting Muslims. We have no objection," he told the media.

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On the row over his remark that Hussainabad subdivision in Palamu district will become a district named after Ram or Krishna if the BJP comes to power, Mr Sarma said, "Is it a crime to talk about changing the name of a place? Then the Jharkhand movement was illegal too."

Eighty-one seats of Jharkhand will vote on November 13 and 20. The ruling alliance of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, the Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal is pushing hard to return to power. On the other side is the BJP, All Jharkhand Students' Union, JDU and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas).

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