Zone Startups to launch accelerator programs for student and women entrepreneurs

Startup accelerator Zone Startups India has announced expansion of its space, with the support of National Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Development Board (NSTEDB). Zone Startups India is an international joint-venture between Ryerson Futures Inc (Toronto) and the BSE Institute.

It is the first such program to receive this grant under the government's NSTEDB program. The grant money will be used by Zone Startups India to almost double its current operating space at the BSE and support a larger number of startups and entrepreneurs, it said in a statement in Mumbai.

"In the next phase of growth, Zone Startups India is launching new programs targeted at student and women entrepreneurs as well as setting up a new centre which will be a soft-landing hub for international tech startups seeking to expand in Mumbai," said Ajay Ramasubramaniam, Director, Zone Startups India.

Started in February of 2014, the program accelerates technology startups with a focus on enterprise technologies. Till date, the program has accelerated 66 startups. Over the past year, 14 startups have cumulatively raised in excess of Rs 30 crore, Ramasubramaniam said.