Kashmir's Startup Scene Just Got A Major Boost

Greenovator Incubation Foundation and Startup Kashmir sign MoU to bring structured innovation and entrepreneurship programs to Jammu and Kashmir’s underserved youth.

- KO Web Desk

In an effort to bring more structure to Jammu and Kashmir's patchy startup ecosystem, a Srinagar-based academic incubator has signed a formal partnership with a private consultancy to deliver innovation programs across the region.

The Greenovator Incubation Foundation, or GIF, based at the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Srinagar, has entered into a one-year agreement with Startup Kashmir Consultancy Pvt. Ltd., a local firm supporting early-stage businesses.

The memorandum of understanding, signed this week, will allow the two organizations to jointly run entrepreneurship workshops, campus-based startup bootcamps, and industry-facing innovation events aimed at college students and first-time entrepreneurs.

Executives involved in the partnership say the goal is to shift the region's startup conversation from inspiration to implementation.

“Young people here are ready,” said Prof. M.. Wani, Director of GIF and Head of Mechanical Engineering at NIT Srinagar. “They just need a working system that connects their ideas to real-world markets.”

Under the agreement, Startup Kashmir will support GIF in implementing key programs across educational institutions and public platforms. These include identifying high-potential startups, organizing regional ideathons and industrial challenges, and producing a startup-focused publication to document the emerging ecosystem.