To celebrate 5 years of Entrepreneurship Mindset curriculum in Delhi Government schools, Education Minister Atishi inaugurated the National Conference on ‘The Power of Entrepreneurship Education- Developing Youth Mindset for Innovation and Economic Growth’ today. The one-day conference was followed by the Business Blasters Students’ Expo and was organized by SCERT Delhi.
During this national conference, students from the ‘Business Blasters’ 2022-23 batch of schools under the Kejriwal government showcased their business ideas and products at the expo. Additionally, presentations of 45 research papers on entrepreneurial mindset development, education, and ecosystem topics were made, from 8 states. The conference featured presentations and panel discussions on various subjects by young entrepreneurs, successful businesspersons, students, and teachers.
While addressing the student entrepreneurs from Delhi Government Schools from all across the capital, Education Minister Atishi said, “When we talk about education, its primary objective is to make students financially independent. However, today, our country has a large number of unemployed youth. This is because when students complete their school and college education, they start searching for a good job. The number of these young people is in the millions, but there are neither enough government jobs nor sufficient private employment opportunities in the country.”
She added that in the country, students are ingrained with the mindset from childhood that the purpose of education is to secure a good job. However, looking at the statistics, every year a significant number of youth complete their education from schools and colleges. In this scenario, by 2030, the country will need around 90 million non-agricultural jobs. This implies that there will be a requirement to create 27,000 new jobs every day in the country by 2030.
Education Minister Atishi stated that in such a scenario, a significant question arises: if every youth who completes their school or college education aims to secure a good job, then who will create jobs? To address this issue, the Kejriwal government has initiated the Entrepreneurship Mindset Curriculum in schools, aiming to find solutions to this challenge.
She stated that the aim of the EMC is to ensure that students graduating from Delhi government schools don’t just seek jobs but become job providers. The most crucial part of this EMC is the Business Blasters program, where our young entrepreneurs created significant impacts. With a mere seed capital of Rs 2,000, our students prepared their startups. Teams were formed by our school students, and across Delhi, more than 50,000 teams were created. Over three lakh students participate in this program every year. The confidence instilled in our students through this program is remarkable.
Sharing examples of the self-confidence instilled in students under the Business Blasters initiative, Education Minister Atishi said, “Under Business Blasters, our students started a startup to make Bluetooth speakers. When they were sharing their idea for investment with investors, they were asked how they would further grow their business. In response, a girl studying in the 12th grade said, ‘With the profit we have earned, we will hire a pass-out from IIT Delhi who is an electrical engineer, and they will assist us in production.’
Education Minister Atishi mentioned that at the age when children dream of studying at IIT, Business Blasters instills confidence in Delhi government school children to discuss providing jobs to the youth who graduate from IITs. This self-confidence will propel our country forward, and this confidence is what will contribute to the economic progress of our nation.
She mentioned that with the confidence instilled in these children, they won’t have to stand in long lines to find jobs anymore. Our students can now become financially independent, provide employment to others, and contribute to the economic development of the country. This is our success, and there is confidence that our youth will fulfill the daily requirement of creating 27,000 new jobs before the country, making India the number one country in the world.
The Education Minister stated that the Business Blasters program showcases the talent and potential of our youth. It has proven that if we empower our youth, they will find solutions to all the challenges facing the country.
Keynote speaker and Co-Founder of HCL, Arjun Malhotra, said, “We need to look at how we can solve our local problems. I would like to tell educators here to nurture and encourage their students to look at the problems in society affecting the lives of common people and find solutions to them using their entrepreneurial mindset.”
He added, “We also need to ensure that we keep learning every time to survive in the rapidly advancing times ahead. Continuous learning is not essential but critical now.”
Addressing the HoSs and educators at the conference, Dr. Sandhya Chintala, Executive Director/CEO of IT- ITeS Sector Skills Council Nasscom said, “The landscape of every industry is undergoing rapid transformation due to the pervasive influence of technology, which has become an omnipresent force. It is imperative to incorporate a future skills component into our curriculum, enabling a blended learning approach to better prepare individuals for the evolving professional landscape.”
It is to be noted that that prominent entrepreneurs such as Arjun Malhotra, Co-Founder of the renowned IT company HCL, Sandhya Chintala, Executive Director of IT-ITES, Aditya Aroda, CEO of Fad Network, Ritesh Malik, Co-Founder of Plaksha University, MeKin Maheshwari, Co-Founder of the Entrepreneur Learning Foundation, and Sherry Chahal, Founder of Sheros, participated in the conference.
From the Business Blasters Expo
->RoautoX
RoautoX is an innovative company specializing in robotics and automation
solutions, with a focus on improving people’s lives. Their first creation, Securex, is a cutting-edge security system that provides accurate protection for homes and businesses by minimizing false alarms and sending quick alerts via SMS and calls and it automatically ON the Lights and 120db built-in Alarm. The start-up was started by Jayash Jangra in 2021 with an investment of Rs 2000 only, but now he has expanded the team by hiring 10 students from his own college. “I had an interest in coding since class 7th and had been learning it through YouTube videos. Along with this I also wanted to be an entrepreneur. But Business Blasters was a turning point in my life when I got a seed money of Rs 2000. I immediately combined both my passion for coding and entrepreneurship and started this business. The current turnover of my company is Rs 8 lakhs,” said Jayash.
->Stun Punch
Stun Punch started by Siddhant and his 6 friends is a parent company that develops safety devices. Its first product is “TRODEN”. It is essentially a close proximity self-defense device that uses high-voltage electric Stun to stop an attacker. It is a non-lethal device that momentarily disrupts muscle control while causing confusion and fear.
It uses a 3.7-volt rechargeable battery as a Power Source and with a High voltage converter, creates a shocking Stun. The device is easy to use and carry around. It can be recharged and every recharge lasts up to a month.
It can be used in any sort of situation, where one feels physically threatened by someone. Sharing why the customers should go for TRODEN, Siddhant said, “Let’s take Pepper Spray for example, it is the most commonly used product for self-defense but there are many issues with this product, it to be refilled everytime it goes empty. It is costly, outdated and has a higher possibility of getting jammed in an emergency. On the other hand, ‘Torden’ doesn’t need battery replacement, because it’s rechargeable. This device is cheap, convenient and modern.” The company was started with an investment of Rs 6000.
->Bright Future
The startup “Bright Future,” established by students of Acharya Tulsi Sarvodaya Bal Vidyalaya in Chattarpur, has developed Sensor Glasses for visually impaired individuals. Visually impaired people often require assistance in their daily lives for navigation within their homes and outdoors. As human assistance is not always feasible, a solution to this problem has been under research for a considerable time.
At Bright Future, students have created a smart solution to this challenge using ultrasonic glasses. These smart glasses for the visually impaired offer ultrasonic obstacle detection and are mounted on wearable glasses, providing silent vibration alerts. The microcontrollers scan the sensor data received to gain a better understanding of the distance. Thus, this system enables blind individuals to receive more detailed information about obstacles/objects in front of each eye using vibrations, as explained by its founders.
->AK Logistics
The team from Sarvodaya Bal Vidyalaya, Shakarpur, has started their logistics business called A.K. Logistics. They felt the need for this venture when one of their team members, Ashish, faced difficulties while trying to transport some goods using a truck booking service. Neither did he receive the goods nor any updates about the truck he had booked. This lack of transparency in the logistics industry inspired Ashish to start his own logistics business.
Their business provides customers with the convenience of real-time tracking of trucks. Additionally, when they rent trucks from other individuals/agencies, they thoroughly inspect the truck drivers and their assistants. Customers also receive comprehensive information about logistics on their mobile devices. The team has provided jobs to 20 people and is also collaborating with prominent courier companies through tie-ups.
