Tamil Nadu to create 10,000 more startups by 2026, says Tansim CEO

The Tamil Nadu Startup and Innovation Mission (Tansim) is planning to support the creation of at least 10,000 startups in the state by 2026, Tansim Chief Executive Officer Sivarajah Ramanathan said.  

Tansim is the nodal agency for start-ups in Tamil Nadu and is working on a new start-up policy to boost the new investor eco-system in the state. “We formed Tansim a year ago. Our vision is to create 10,000 new start-ups in the next four years. This is our mid-term vision,” said Ramanathan. The agency will be focussing on the existing 80 incubation centres in Tamil Nadu and taking steps to connecting them with markets and investors. It will also create a startup database as well as form a mentor network.This is to look into how many start-ups are there in each district, funding details of them and the sectors in which they are part of.

“We will be promoting entrepreneurship networks in colleges. In addition, will ensure that more players get funding outside cities like Chennai and Coimbatore,” he added. In the recently concluded Budget, Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan had announced the plan to set up regional Startup Hubs in Erode, Madurai and Tirunelveli to ensure the development of startup eco-system across the state.

In addition to this, a corpus of Rs 30 crore was announced for Tansim to boost startups by SC and ST entrepreneurs. The minister also allotted Rs 50 crore to the Emerging Sector Seed Fund to make equity investments in Tamil Nadu-based startups. The state also has plans to set up a start-up hub in Chennai for Rs 75 crore through Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation (TIDCO).

“We want to be among the top three states in terms of start-up ecosystem – through supporting ideas, investments, raising funds and developing an entrepreneurial mindset,” Ramanathan added. With the idea of having a distributed growth, the state government is giving thrust on agricultural technology start-ups and climate focused players in the long run. Through the current plan Tansim expects at least around 5-10 per cent companies to get funding in the coming days, which will also boost the job scenario in the state.