SACC India and HDFC Bank Support Start-ups

Gurugram, Jul 9, 2024:

Start-up Accelerator Chamber of Commerce (SACC) India proudly announced the winners of its most recent cohort for the SACC India Pragati Seed Grant Program under the esteemed HDFC Parivartan Start-up Grants. This grants program provides funding to incubators and accelerators that focus on ‘social impact start-ups’ in areas such as improving education, skill development, and livelihood enhancement. This year, 41 incubators and accelerators in the field of social impact entrepreneurship received grants totaling ₹19.6 crore to support 170 start-ups working across critical focus areas through HDFC Bank Parivartan Start-up Grants.

Following an extensive selection process, SACC India meticulously sifted through 248 applications. From this pool of talent, the top 10 start-ups were handpicked to partake in the Parivartan Cohort Pragati program. This program featured a rigorous 2-week, 5-session Capacity-Building Acceleration Program throughout March 2024. Notably, the initiative garnered enthusiastic participation from 10 mentors and esteemed investors representing prominent venture capitalist firms. Finally, three start-ups—Innogical, Uniconnect, and Aavya—were selected for seed grants. The valedictory ‘Grant Ceremony’ took place in the Chandigarh capital region.

Owing to the impact driven by this program, SACC India was recognised at the prestigious Global CSR and ESG Awards 2024 held on 29th June 2024. SACC was honoured with the “Most Impactful NGO of the Year 2024” award held in Gurugram. Notably, SACC has been working in empowering youth to take up entrepreneurship since 2014 and in that process has sensitised more than 100,000 youth and has given handholding support to over 1000 start-ups and MSMEs with incubation, acceleration and impact investing. The organisation derives support from several state governments and private sector corporates like Google, Netsmartz Group, HDFC Bank, IDS Infotech, Infosys and DLF to name a few.

In a statement regarding this milestone, Mr. Manipal Dhariwal, Co-Founder and President of SACC India, conveyed his exhilaration regarding the recent developments. He underscored the profound impact anticipated from these supported start-ups within the realms of education, skill development, and livelihood enhancement. Mr. Dhariwal accentuated the invaluable support provided by the incubator and the substantial grants furnished by corporate entities, paving the way for ground-breaking innovations.

In a statement about the HDFC Parivartan start-up acceleration program hosted by SACC India, Vice President Mr Nitin Monga expressed his enthusiasm for the initiative’s progress and its future impact. He emphasized the crucial role the supported start-ups will play in advancing education, skill development, and livelihood enhancement. These combined efforts of HDFC Parivartan and SACC India are poised to accelerate innovations and make significant contributions to societal development.

Mr. Vineet Khurana, CEO of SACC India, expressed his excitement about the latest advances in a statement on this milestone. He emphasized the significant influence that these funded start-ups are expected to have in the areas of livelihood improvement, skill development, and education. Besides cash grants, support will be extended by HDFC Bank and SACC India to the start-ups through ongoing mentoring and creating new business opportunities over the next year.

Ms. Neha Agrawal, Senior Vice President, Start-ups, HDFC Bank, said, “We are dedicated to fostering impactful social start-ups that drive positive change within our communities. By backing incubators and accelerators, we aim to fortify and cultivate the entire start-up ecosystem in India. Through the HDFC Bank Parivartan Start-up Grants, our goal is to empower these innovative ventures to achieve SDG targets and create a better future for all with their solutions.”

Ms. Nusrat Pathan, Head CSR, HDFC Bank, said, “Our Parivartan Start-up Grants program reaffirms our steadfast commitment to fostering social innovation 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 critical sectors, ultimately contributing to a more sustainable and inclusive future for all.”

HDFC Parivartan, a flagship corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative by HDFC Bank, endeavors to foster sustainable economic and social development across India. Embracing thematic areas such as education, healthcare, livelihood enhancement, and environmental sustainability, HDFC Parivartan empowers communities and spearheads inclusive growth.

With an unwavering commitment to innovation, collaboration, and tangible impact, HDFC Parivartan plays a crucial role in driving significant change, paving the way for a brighter future for all stakeholders.