In Khurja, located in Uttar Pradesh’s Bulandshahar district, pottery is more than a decorative product. Ceramic wares made here find place in homes, hotels, galleries, and export showrooms, supporting a long chain of livelihoods—from clay preparation and moulding to painting, glazing, and firing. Recognising this deep-rooted ecosystem, ceramic products have been identified as Bulandshahar’s district…
Venture capital funding into Indian startups rose marginally in the first week of February, and it was largely due to two reasonably sized transactions, but fund inflow continues to remain restricted, revealing the challenges for the ecosystem. The total VC funding for the week stood at $191 million across 20 transactions. In contrast, the previous…
Bindi-making in Ballia rarely looks like an industry from the outside. It happens in homes and small workspaces, where sheets are cut into tiny shapes, pasted carefully onto cards, and finished with stones, beads, pins, or thread. The result is a product that moves through weddings, temple visits, local markets, and exhibition stalls, while quietly…
The Indian Institute of Technology Madras Research Park (IITMRP) and venture capital firm Unicorn India Ventures launched a 6 billion rupee ($66.3 million) fund on Friday, aiming to back early-stage deep technology startups in sectors critical to India’s strategic interests. The fund, titled ‘IIT Madras Unicorn Frontier Fund I’, will focus on intellectual property-led startups…
India’s fintech ecosystem is entering a transformative phase driven by artificial intelligence (AI), with the potential to redefine financial inclusion, trust, and efficiency, a senior official from the Ministry of Finance said. Addressing the AI-in-Fintech Bharat Conclave in Bengaluru on Friday, Nagaraju M, Secretary, Department of Financial Services (DFS), Union Ministry of Finance, said AI…
While startup ecosystems in Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Delhi continue to grow, a parallel movement has emerged in Tier II and III cities, where thousands of first-generation business owners are building digital-first ventures with national ambitions. Unlike their metro counterparts, businesses in towns like Indore, Siliguri, Coimbatore, or Bhagalpur have historically struggled with fragmented logistics networks,…
India’s biggest payments battle was never about payments alone. It was about distribution, habit, and regulation. The rivalry between PhonePe and Google Pay has shaped how hundreds of millions of Indians transact daily. Together, the two control more than 80% of India’s UPI transactions, creating one of the most intense platform duopolies in the country’s…
In Naini, Prayagraj, patients often arrive at an eye clinic with watering eyes, sharp pain, and lids pressed shut after a speck of dust or grit gets trapped under the eyelid. For Dr. Ashutosh Yadav, that moment has become a familiar starting point for careful, methodical work that ends with the patient blinking normally again…
In Natrada village, near Panwari in Mahoba district, a modest roadside workshop has become a practical stop for farmers and drivers who cannot afford long delays when a vehicle breaks down. The shop, KP Diesel Service, handles tractor repairs and routine servicing, as well as diesel pumps, nozzle-injectors, and brake work. On busy days, it…
From the government’s efforts in incubating deeptech startups in the country to Dassault’s executives’ focus on private capital and policy in building startups, today’s roundup captures key shifts shaping business and innovation. Featured stories In Erode’s hills, a solar mill is helping tribal farmers reclaim millet In hilly regions in Tamil Nadu where electricity is…
