HDFC Bank, India’s leading private sector bank, announced the winners of its Parivartan Start-up Grants programme for FY2024. This year, 41 incubators and accelerators in the field of social impact entrepreneurship will receive grants totaling Rs 19.6 crore to support 170 start-ups working across specific focus areas.
This year’s programme is undertaken in partnership with Atal Innovation Mission, a Government of India initiative under NITI Aayog. The focus areas for the 2024 grants include Climate Innovation, Financial Inclusion, Agriculture and Sustainable Rural Economy, Accessible and Affordable Healthcare, Education and Livelihood Enhancement, Gender Diversity and Inclusion.
The start-ups that have received grants come from various states across the including Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Delhi, and Haryana, with the largest number originating from Maharashtra. Over a half of the 170 start-ups hail from over 60 tier II/III cities.
Ms. Nusrat Pathan, Head CSR, HDFC Bank said “Our Parivartan Start-up Grants programme reaffirms our steadfast commitment to fostering social innovation and driving positive change in our communities. Innovation is the key to addressing the development needs of society. Through strategic collaborations and targeted investments, we aim to nurture and amplify the impact of innovative social start-ups across key sectors, ultimately contributing to a more sustainable and inclusive future for all.”
The grants were awarded to leading and emerging incubators such as HTIC at IIT Madras, Awadh at IIT Ropar, T-Hub (Hyderabad), FITT – IIT Delhi, RISE Foundation at IISER (Kolkata), VJTI (Mumbai), Forge Forward (Coimbatore), NTIBIF at NIFTEM (Kindli). Some of this year’s high-impact tracks were developed in association with nodal agencies – RBI-H, MoFPI, NSDC and Goa Start-up Mission. Through these incubators, the recipients of the grants include innovative start-ups demonstrating social and environmental impact while creating significant economic value add to economy.
Mr. Arup Rakshit, Group Head, Treasury, HDFC Bank said, “We are proud to support social start-ups that are driving positive change in our communities. By also supporting incubators and accelerators we are committed to developing and strengthening the entire start-up ecosystem in India. Through the HDFC Bank Parivartan Start-up Grants, we aim to empower these innovative ventures to make a meaningful impact and create a better future for all.”
Now in its seventh year, the Parivartan Start-up Grants represent HDFC Bank’s unwavering dedication to social responsibility. Since its inception in 2017, the initiative has been a significant support for over 400 start-ups, handpicked from 120+ incubators nationwide.