Is Tamil Nadu Emerging Cradle Of Innovative Startups?

The heart-breaking quest for jobs, both in the private and public space is now taking a dramatic turn from “gimme a job” to giving jobs thanks to the fast changing ecosystem of startups. Tamil Nadu for long the incubator of research through its IIT (M), and tech centres of learning has set an ambitious course to churn up the environment for creative startups.  Leading the change is Shivarajah Ramanathan CEO, TN Startup innovations Mission.  He is now eyeing the Trillion dollar dream of incubating viable ventures that are fair and inclusive. IIT-Madras Gopal Deshpande Centre (GDC) has set a flight path for youth to take wings, “nurture research for world class startups.“ Dr Gururaj Deshpande and Kris Gopalakrishnan (Infosys) are mentoring IIT Alumni to commercialise research. The theme, global think for local needs.  GDC designed a very rugged boot camp of 8 weeks duration for investors and innovators. Eleven teams form a cohort, and each team is mentored to test the strength of the ideas. CMO of one such team, Suresh Srinivasan is upbeat about the National Award won by Zentron Labs, a post-harvest startup. The company has developed Hortisort, India’s first high-speed optical fruit grading system that sorts Apples, Oranges, Mangoes, Guavas by colour, weight, quality and freshness. This business plan of integrating technology is a boon for horticulturists. Who says don’t compare apples and oranges?