In true entrepreneurial spirit we undertook an ambitious trip to the north-eastern states of India. What we saw there convinced us that the region is full of life, ideas, entrepreneurial energy and it just cannot wait to be connected with the rest of India and the globe.
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| Prashanth Hebbar |
There are a number of agencies, banks, the Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises, the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region and the state governments who are working towards giving the region’s entrepreneurial talent a boost. Our analyst Shinjini Ganguli went around the region meeting officials, entrepreneurs, heads of governments to put together our special report. I spoke to Shinjini on her experiences. Excerpts:
What struck you the most in the north-eastern states?
The entire region is really beautiful, of course. I was surprised to find that though the states do not have too many industries, their standard of living appeared to be very decent. People are nice. They are not closed to outsiders. The culture is different and very colorful.
Is the perception of a troubled region for real?
No, not really. I saw a perfectly normal life. I think the outside world has developed the perception mostly because of what filters through the media which are mostly about troubled incidents. Again, the remoteness and bad connectivity makes for bad press, I guess.
Are there opportunities for rest of India?
Definitely, there are ample opportunities out there. Tourisim is one obvious opportunity though.
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| DARE Team with J B Patnaik, Governor, Assam |
Shinjini and Dare team toured the north-eastern region for 20 days. The team landed there without any leads or references. However, developmental agencies and most importantly SBI came to our aid. They helped us make our way, get to meet people and travel around with ease. We experienced the north-eastern people’s hospitality first hand.
We have put together a vast resource of reading and referral material on north eastern states in this issue. Take for instance how Dr Mukul Sangma, Chief Minister of Meghalaya talks about horticulture and compares with the advances made by Netherlands. We interviewed more than 20 micro and small and medium entrepreneurs. If you want to get in touch with them, mail us and we will put you through them.
The project was a real eye opener for us about north-eastern states of India. While we cannot claim it to be comprehensive, I really hope you will benefit out of this special report.
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