Institution’s Innovation Council (IIC), KISS Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar celebrated the ‘National Startup Day’ on 16 January 2023. IIC-KISSDU celebrated National Startup Day to ignite the spirit of entrepreneurship among its Tribal students. National Startup Day is dedicated to fostering, celebrating and recognising the contributions of start-up companies and entrepreneurs to the economy and society. As part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has declared 16th January to be celebrated as ‘National Start-up Day’. Start-ups are going to be the backbone of new India. Celebrating National Startup Day is also an opportunity to raise awareness about startups’ challenges, such as access to funding, talent and market opportunities. To celebrate the day, IIC-KISSDU organised a panel discussion on ‘Journey Towards Entrepreneurship”. Dr. Gouri Shankar Beriha, Assistant Professor, School of Tribal Resource Management, started the conversation. The panel discussion moderators were Dr Binita Nanda, Dr. Sudipta Nanda and Dr Anita Pareek, Assistant Professor, School of Tribal Resource Management, KISSDU. The panellists were Ms Priti Pandey, Founder & CEO of BIONGS Technologies Private Limited; Ms Shruti Khalko, founder of Tribo Next; Mr Bikram Biruli, founder of Adivasi Social Welfare Foundation; Mr Biswanath Soren, Founder of Litagodet, Mr Amar Kumar Muska, Founder Handmade Organic Shop and Mr Sanjib Mallick, Founder Mr Jack. The panellists discussed various aspects and challenges of an entrepreneur. All the founders narrated their entrepreneurial journey and the obstacles they faced while ideating. They talked about how an entrepreneur should be accountable and ready for the entrepreneurial journey’s challenges. Sixty students and twelve faculty members were present in the panel discussion. The panellists urged the students to become job givers, not job seekers. The celebration event was successful while strengthening the spirit of innovation, entrepreneurship and start-up ecosystem.
