Chandigarh: Startups of Punjab
are expecting a lot from the state’s new Chief Minister, Bhagwant Mann, to
accelerate their pace of expansion and growth, which will eventually help the
state create jobs which is a pressing need. As the new CM took oath in Khatkar
Kalan today, Punjab Startup Inc. announced a wish-list for the new CM. IT
entrepreneurs of Punjab feel that startups have the potential to drive Punjab’s holistic development sustainably. However, there
are stumbling blocks that the new CM needs to remove.
“The major issues needed to be addressed are making
the International airport fully functional, technical workforce
availability and technology ecosystem. A vicious circle of classroom teaching
has been created course after course with department heads not encouraging
students to opt for internships and jobs and pushing them for higher studies.
As a result, there is always a workforce shortage in the IT industry. Tech
education needs to be enabled at the tehsil level by establishing ITIs,” said
Navdeep Gill, founder, XenonStack, a well-established technology consulting and
platform engineering company of Punjab.
Ravi Garg, CEO, Dairytech.ai, said, “The new government
should adopt a proactive and inclusive approach towards startups in the state.
The startups should be updated about business and funding opportunities
available for them under the government’s ambit. Government should provide
affordable rates for electricity and the Internet. Hotline support for business
as a one-stop solution for all taxations related concerns is also needed. Some
portal where all Punjab IT companies should get listed and promoted is
required. There should be a section on the government portal where tech firms
can put up their vacancies."
Sunil Garg, Co-Founder, trakop.com said, “For quality
education, many students leave Punjab for
higher studies and don’t come back. The government should provide training
programs for upcoming technology changes and organize fairs to motivate the
young talent and retain them in the state. Regular interaction between small,
medium enterprises and the state government will be of great help in
understanding emerging challenges and finding their solutions.” Garg’s startup
offers a host of artificial intelligence (AI) enabled services to the dairy
sector.”
Gill further said, “For scaling up of startups, Punjab based startups should be given 25% of the state
government’s IT projects. We also want funds for product development and
research. We need infrastructure support for a minimum of three years. International Airport
should have direct flights to London, Toronto, San Francisco, Singapore and New York to improve connectivity among top
startup hubs in the world. There needs to be development of areas dedicated to
IT and tech hubs with good roads, round the clock power, street lights during
night and cleanliness.”
Startup founders from Punjab
feel that companies should be encouraged to adopt villages under CSR for
providing technical skills at the village level. They feel the government
should ensure a well trained IT workforce and round the clock safety and
security of women so that the IT industry can function 24x7. BW
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