The India Post, Chandigarh, 13th February, 2009 : Punjab and Chandigarh Chapter of The Indus Entrepreneur (TiE) organized a seminar on "Entrepreneurial Punjab: Building on Strengths", here today at the PHD House.
Mr. Kanwal Rekhi, managing partner of Inventus Capital Partners, a Silicon Valley based cross-border, US-India early stage technology venture capital fund presented the keynote address, and emphasized the need for developing a conducive eco system that can help entrepreneurial growth. "If you can dream it you can do it and one does not need any entrepreneurial gene to do that", he advised the young entrepreneurs.
As India continues on an economic boom, there is a need to assess the Indian ecosystem for its conduciveness to promote and sustain successful entrepreneurial ventures, Mr Rekhi said.
He stressed the need for the state of Punjab to encourage entrepreneurship and capitalize on its inherent strengths, as the people of this region are historically entrepreneurial.
"Entrepreneurship flourishes in hard times as it brings economic discipline", he said.
Mr. S.S. Channy, Principal Secretary, Department of Industries and Commerce, Government of Punjab, speaking on the occasion said that Punjab has taken several initiatives for developing entrepreneurship-friendly environment including establishment of 24 hour helpline, and six industrial promotion boards for various industries, etc.
Earlier, welcoming the panelists, Puneet Vatsayan, President TiE Punjab & Chandigarh expressed the hope that TiE Punjab & Chandigarh would be able to play a role in creating, fostering and nurturing the entrepreneurial spirit in the region.
Later a panel comprising of Mr. I.S. Paul, Chairman and Managing Director, Drish Shoes Ltd, Mr Yashovardhan Saboo, CEO of KDDL Ltd, and Mr. Ramesh Vinayak, Principal Correspondent of India today, discussed the expectations and initiatives of this region in creating the enabling environment.
Mr. Paul suggested the need for more professionalism and creative thinking in order to make any enterprise succeed, while Mr Y. Saboo suggested that Punjab government should take the lead in celebrating entrepreneurship at every level and encourage women entrepreneurs in the state.
Mr. Ramesh Vinayak, principal correspondent of India Today, sharing his experience in Punjab said that the state government should create more incubators to encourage new enterprises.
Kanwal Rekhi is a Global Charter Member of TiE and TiE Global Trustee. Kanwal Rekhi has been called ‘the dominant investor & a sage of Silicon Valley’ by Forbes magazine and is a renowned leader and veteran of the IT industry. In his phenomenal rags to riches story, Mr Rekhi invented and built hi-tech products and solutions since the mid 80’s, built and sold companies as a serial entrepreneur, actively investing as VC / Investor and advising many corporations.
Kanwal was named Entrepreneur of the Year in 1987 by the Arthur-Young/Venture magazine. In 1994, Kanwal was named to the Board of advisors to the President of Michigan Tech. Kanwal was honored with a Doctorate in 1997 in Business and Engineering from Michigan Tech.
He also founded the Kanwal Rekhi Schools of Information Technology at both IIT-Bombay and Michigan Tech.
Kanwal has actively participated in the emergence and growth of Silicon Valley and India. He applies all of his time helping entrepreneurs accomplish great results, and co-founded Inventus to devote his full energy to build a leading Indo-US venture franchise. Since 1994, Kanwal has led the first venture round in numerous early-stage companies, holding 23 board positions and actively guiding entrepreneurs to 19 exits including 6 IPOs.
This session was organized to to assess the prevailing entrepreneurial ecosystem in Punjab and provide inputs to foster, nurture and enable the spirit of entrepreneurship and to create, build and sustain the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the region, said Puneet Vatsayan, President of Punjab & Chandigarh chapter.