SRINAGAR: The Screening Committee, constituted under Jammu and Kashmir Start-up Policy 2024–27, held its maiden meeting at Jammu and Kashmir Entrepreneurship Development Institute (JKEDI), Sempora Pampore to screen and evaluate the applications for grant of seed fund assistance to eligible start-ups of the Union Territory.
The meeting was chaired by Secretary in Industries and Commerce department and Director JKEDI, Khalid Jahangir, who is also the Nodal Officer for implementation of the Start-up Policy in J&K and chairperson of the committee. Other members of the screening committee Director, Industries & Commerce, Kashmir, Khalid Majeed; Professor & Dean, Student Welfare, Division of Agriculture Economics and ABM, SKUAST-Jammu, Dr. Sudhakar Dwivedi; Director, Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development (CIED), IUST, Awantipora, Dr. Parvaiz Ahmad Mir; Associate Professor, National Institute of Technology (NIT), Srinagar, Dr. Saad Parvaiz; CEO, SKUAST-K Innovation, Incubation and Entrepreneurship Centre, Dr. Naveed Ahmad; In-charge, NewGen IEDC, University of Kashmir, Dr. Irfana Baba; Industrialist (President & CEO, AB Consultants), Anil Suri; Hotelier & Entrepreneur, Asif Iqbal Burza; Founder, SSM College of Engineering & Technology, Dilafroze Qazi; Associate Professor & In-charge, Atal Incubation Centre, IIT Jammu, Prof. Dhariti; Incubation Manager, IIT Jammu, Akash; Prof. Neelu Mehrotra from Jammu University; Pratiti from Startup India; Dr. Rashid Syed from iCreate Ahmedabad; Ankur Gupta from MIET Jammu and Irtif Mehraj, In-Charge CIIBM, JKEDI and Member Secretary of the committee.
During the meeting, 61 start-ups from Kashmir division presented their pitches before the Committee. The members provided real-time feedback on issues like market readiness, financial viability, scalability, sourcing of investment, and enhancing competitiveness. The Screening Committee will meet again at the JKEDI Jammu Campus to screen the applications for seed funding from the Jammu division.
As per the Operational Guidelines, the recommendations of the Screening Committee will now be placed before the Start-up Task Force Committee, headed by Commissioner Secretary, Industries & Commerce Department, as part of the two-tier process for sanctioning of the seed funding.
Speaking on the occasion, Chairperson of the Committee, Khalid Jahangir reiterated the Government’s resolve to create an enabling ecosystem for entrepreneurship and innovation in J&K. He stressed that seed funding under the J&K Start-up Policy will provide critical early-stage support to promising start-ups, enabling them to transform their innovative ideas into scalable and sustainable ventures.
As part of the policy, JKEDI had issued advertisements and in response to that 193 applications were received, which included 122 applications from the earlier round. After detailed scrutiny by JKEDI’s Centre for Innovation, Incubation and Business Modelling (CIIBM), 101 applications were found complete in all respects and were placed before the Screening Committee for evaluation.
Pertinently, the J&K Start-up Policy 2024–27, notified by the Government, envisions making J&K one of the leading start-up ecosystems in the country by 2027, while facilitating the establishment of at least 2,000 new start-ups. Among its major interventions is the provision of seed funding of up to ₹20 lakh (in four equal instalments) to recognized start-ups for activities such as prototype development, introduction of innovative products and services, market entry, and scaling up.
The J&K Start-up Policy 2024–27 continues to mark a significant step in building an innovation-driven economy in the Union Territory by extending financial incentives, incubation support, mentorship, and market linkages to budding entrepreneurs.
