- Bringing Stakeholders Together to make Tamil Nadu the Sectoral Leader
Chennai, January 24, 2024: StartupTN, the State Nodal Agency for Startup and Innovation under the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Department, Government of Tamil Nadu, is actively propelling Tamil Nadu into the spotlight as the preferred global startup destination. In line with its sectoral initiatives, StartupTN successfully inaugurated the Blue Economy Forum and the Healthcare & Life Sciences Forum on Wednesday.
The inauguration ceremony, held at the Anna Centenary Library, witnessed the launch by Tmt. Archana Patnaik, I.A.S., Secretary, MSME Department, and Dr. Velumani Arockiaswamy, the founder of Thyrocare. The event was attended by Thiru. Sivarajah Ramanathan, Mission Director & CEO of StartupTN, government officials, entrepreneurs, and key stakeholders from various sectors.
Tmt. Archana Patnaik, I.A.S., expressed her delight at Tamil Nadu securing the top position as the ‘Best Performing’ state in the recent States’ Startup Ranking. She emphasized that StartupTN is actively working to foster startups from all parts of the state, breaking geographical barriers. The newly launched sector-specific forums aim to connect startups with mentors and domain experts, offering tailored support to address unique sector-specific needs.
Acknowledging Tamil Nadu’s entrepreneurial potential, Tmt. Archana Patnaik stated that the state government is committed to providing facilities to support startups from their early stages. She highlighted the Startup to Government (S2G) scheme, encouraging startups to contribute to government procurements of products and services.
Thiru. Sivarajah Ramanathan, MD and CEO of StartupTN, mentioned the organization’s focus on 30 sectors for a concentrated approach. Each sector will have a dedicated forum, establishing a distinct support system for startups. Stakeholders from different institutional structures have been onboarded to create engagement and connect domain experts under one umbrella.
The “Blue Economy Forum and the Healthcare & Life Sciences Forum” serve as strategic platforms to bring together startups, innovators, corporates, experts, industry bodies, aspirants, incubators, mentors, investors, government departments, and other stakeholders for focused collaborations. Dr. Velumani Arockiaswamy, in his chief guest address, commended the increasing number of startups in Tamil Nadu and encouraged entrepreneurs to focus on healthcare aspects like early diagnosis and prevention of diseases. He urged entrepreneurs to think big and embrace artificial intelligence for disruptive innovations.
Dr. GSK Velu, Chairman of Trivitron group, emphasized the importance of chasing passion over money, encouraging entrepreneurs to take risks for success. On this occasion, StartupTN inked MoUs with Trivitron Group of Companies, Sathyabama Institute of Science & Technology, and Indian Angel Network for Corporate – Startup connects. Salient features of the launch included a roundtable discussion on the ‘Future of Healthcare and Innovation’ and a panel discussion on ‘Blue Entrepreneurs and their Fundraising Voyage.’ The launch concluded with a networking session.
