Wetland in the Mountains

Even though Assam was late to join the party, in recent years, the state's startup movement has picked up tremendous pace, and as a result, it has generated much hope and opened new opportunities for the youth. Assam was recognized as a Leader (Category A) in developing a strong startup ecosystem in the state by the Government of India in the States' Startup Ranking 2021. In fact, the state government under the aegis of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has been excellent in creating a favorable milieu in the state.

The success of Zerund, a patented Plastic Embedded Lightweight Brick brand, is a case in point. Zerund recently raised Rs. 7.8 Crore in seed capital. The company was nurtured by `Assam Startup - The Nest,' Assam's startup incubation program in line with the Startup India initiative by the government of India. Having carried out 74 outreach events, the Nest, so far, has reached out to over 15,000 students, young innovators, and aspiring startups across every district of Assam. Initiating the Hub and Spoke model, Assam Startup­ The Nest(Hub) has, so far, signed 43 collaboration memoranda with top universities and colleges.

Even beyond the Nest, the startups in Assam are riding a purple patch. A couple of days ago, Silchar based Quickobook raised Rs.1 crore in a seed round from NVCL. Quickobook shares the most extensive network across the northeast, encompassing 5000 plus doctors and touching more than 6.5 lakhs patients' lives. It is pretty clear that Assam's startup ecosystem is emerging swiftly,and unique ideas are being recognized and supported with funds.