Friday 3 February 2012

We are glad to announce the launch of Navodyami 2012. Our first launch had a terrific response and received over 500 applications and finally selected 16 navodyamis winners. Moreover KVGB bank impressed by our program went on to provide instant loan of worth Rs 1 core to our 40 navodyami finalists. we are working with them on regular basis and hope to generate enterprises over 3 cores in this coming year. Please see a glimpse of our program here at this link.
Navodyami is a program to support entrepreneurs with financial and technical support in the Sandbox region. It is a competition and applications are now open!  We are writing to you with a request to help us reach out to eligible youth, entrepreneurs who could benefit from this program.

     As you know Deshpande Foundation is committed to building an ecosystem that nurtures innovation and entrepreneurship. Navodyami is  another step in that direction where we are seeking to provide financial and technical support to budding entrepreneurs from the Sandbox region. Sandbox region includes  districts of Belgaum, Dharwad, Gadag, Haveri and Uttar Kannada. We seek to focus on individuals who live in rural and peri urban areas, are relatively resource starved and typically fall out of formal institutional networks such as banks and training institutes. Some examples could be, an entrepreneur looking to start a food processing unit; a mobile repair shop or services, a product shop in rural areas and so on. We will be looking for business ideas that are innovative, responsive to people’s needs and are run by ethical means.

Navodyami winners will be provided two kinds of support:

Financial Support: The total award money allocated for Navodyami 2012 is fifteen lakhs rupees. Within this, money will be awarded in three categories i.e. less than one lakh rupees; up to three lakh rupees and up to five lakh rupees.  An independent panel of judges will determine the winners and amount of money to be given to a selected business idea.

Technical Support: In the two phase selection we will arrange for winners to go through a mentor ship program. Candidates who successfully graduate from phase two will then be awarded. 

Mrs Mamatha's journey with Navodyami program...

                               There’s nothing wrong to stay as a successful small enterprise. Every beginning has a hard start, o...