T.N. will implement social justice in startup ecosystem, says IT Minister

Tamil Nadu govt. strives to ensure equitable access & social justice in start-up & innovation ecosystem. IIT Madras' CREST lauded for research & thought leadership.

Minister for Information Technology and Digital Services, PTR Palanivel Thiagarajan on Friday, December 15, 2023 said that the Tamil Nadu government is trying to ensure that its philosophy of equitable access and social justice is implemented, even in the start-up and innovation ecosystem.

“We have targeted funds for SC/ST entrepreneurs and women, and with all our training programmes, we are geared to those parts of the community that do not get access to equal education opportunities,” he said while addressing the valedictory session of an International Confluence Conference on Startups and Innovation that was hosted by the Indian Institute of Technology Madras’ (IIT Madras) Centre for Research on Startups and Risk Financing (CREST).

He further said: “I have visited the IIT Madras Research Park several times and I have been impressed with the innovation and incubation ecosystem that exists there. Now, I also find that the other side of the equation, viz., research and thought leadership on the Indian ecosystem is also very strong. Financing is a very important component of the start-up story and I must congratulate IIT Madras for having the foresight to set up something like CREST.”

Mr. Thiagarajan also said, “In Tamil Nadu, we have a decent track record that should be the envy of many states. Part of that is built on our century-long history of focus on education and creation of the kind of human talent and human capital that is capable of benefiting from the waves of new technology, from the opening up of global markets, from opportunities that come up as a function of disruptive or transformative changes in the industry,” he added.