Open Forum for Startups Scheduled on 7th May to Build on This Momentum
Altinho, May 06, 2025: The Goa Open Innovation Challenge 2025, an initiative launched by the Startup & IT Promotion Cell under the Department of Information Technology, Electronics & Communications (DITE&C), Government of Goa, announces its last call for registration, with close to 500 startups from India and across the globe already joining the movement.
This overwhelming response reflects the growing interest in Goa’s innovation ecosystem. The Challenge, which invited problem-solvers to tackle real-world challenges across sectors such as Tourism, Waste Management, Agriculture, Public Services, NABARD, and Industry, has emerged as a platform where startups, student innovators, government departments, and industry leaders converge to drive change.
Through this initiative, selected participants will gain direct piloting opportunities with government and industry stakeholders, enabling them to test, validate, and scale their solutions where it matters most.
As the Challenge moves into its next phase, an Open Forum for Startups will be held on 7th May 2025, between 2:30 PM to 3:00 PM. Startups can choose to join virtually via Google Meet or visit the IT Hub, Altinho during this time. The forum will serve as a space to raise queries, share insights, and engage in meaningful discussion. Click here to register for the Open Forum
With the finale scheduled for 30th May 2025, the Goa Open Innovation Challenge 2025 has already made its mark as a bold step towards scalable innovation—positioning Goa as a ground for developing and deploying practical, technology-led solutions.
April 20, 2025: Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India celebrated its 43rd Foundation Day on 20th April 2025. Hon’ble Chief Minister of Goa Dr. Pramod Sawant addressed the audience virtually. Other luminaries at the event included Chief Guest, Dr. Piruz Khambatta, Chairman – Rasna Group & Honorary Consul General, South Korea (Gujarat); Guest of Honour, Shri Suneel Anchipaka, IAS, Secretary (Industries), Goa; Shri B. S. Pai Angle, Managing Director, EDC Limited, Goa; Shri Dinesh Singh Rawat, Chief General Manager & Zonal Head (Ahmedabad Zone), IDBI Bank Limited, Ahmedabad (and Governing Board Member, EDII) and Dr. Sunil Shukla, Director General, EDII Dignitaries from the Government, corporates, Industry associations and the academia also attended the event which focussed on establishing how entrepreneurship, startups and innovations were impacting the socio-economic growth of the country.
Dr. Pramod Sawant ji addressing virtually, complimented Gujarat for its unique growth model and credited EDII for propagating Entrepreneurship in the country and outside.
Hon’ble Chief Minister said, “Today India is pacing fast on the path of becoming a foremost startup nation under the leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi ji, and in this, EDII is significantly contributing. Goa looks forward to erecting a strong start-up oriented ecosystem that can walk hand in hand with the vision of ‘Viksit Bharat’ and ‘Viksit Gujarat’, seeking to accomplish the mandate of Viksit Goa.” The Chief Minister also referred to the notable work being done by the EDII – Goa Centre for promoting Entrepreneurship (inaugurated on 12th March 2024), which he mentioned was set up by EDII after he had initiated this need through a letter to Shri Bhupendra Patel ji, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Gujarat.
Shri Dinesh Singh Rawat said, “EDII has been playing a key role in employing entrepreneurship to upgrade and uplift people from all sections of people.”
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Piruz Khambatta said, “Entrepreneurship has come far; it is hailed as a powerful tool for socio-economic growth.
The vision of Viksit Bharat is based on the pillars of entrepreneurship, skill development, technology, innovations and expanding markets. I commend EDII for envisioning growth on these factors, decades ago. Entrepreneurship and Skill Development will always be in need as it will continue to open the path of sustained growth for the country. I extend my heartfelt congratulations to EDII for training and inspiring people across sections and sectors to become entrepreneurs.”
Commenting on entrepreneurship and EDII- Goa Centre’s Contribution in Goa, Shri Suneel Anchipaka, IAS, Secretary (Industries), Goa said, “Goa, with its unique blend of culture, creativity, and commerce, is fast emerging as one of the most progressive states. The EDII-Goa Centre, along with the EDC Ltd., is playing a vital role in fostering entrepreneurial spirit across all sections of society, which is essential for achieving balanced and holistic growth. The youth of the region are coming forward with their creative ideas, which are being carefully incubated and nurtured into enterprises. Entrepreneurship is fast becoming a preferred career option.”
In his address, Dr. Sunil Shukla traced the genesis of EDII and emphasized the potential of entrepreneurship. He said, “As EDII marks 43 years of fostering entrepreneurial spirit, we feel happy to witness how mindsets have got transformed into accepting that entrepreneurs are not just born, but they can be developed too, through well-conceived training interventions and counselling. EDII has always sought to promote inclusive growth on the premise of entrepreneurship, and it is great to see how this vision is getting realized. Entrepreneurship is pitted today as a development marvel and that gives us great satisfaction. We acknowledge the support of Government and corporates in our journey.”
Panjim, March 27, 2025: The Startup & IT Promotion Cell, Department of Information Technology, Electronics & Communications (DITE&C), Government of Goa, is set to launch the Goa Open Innovation Challenge 2025 (GOIC 2025) on March 28, 2025, under the leadership of the Hon’ble Minister for Tourism, Information Technology, Electronics & Communications, Printing and Stationery, Government of Goa, Shri. Rohan A. Khaunte, and in the presence of Hon’ble MLA and Chairman of Info Tech Corporation Goa, Dr. Chandrakant Shetye. This two-month program aims to bring together startups, students, government bodies and industry to develop technology-driven solutions for key challenges in sectors such as Tourism, Waste Management, Agriculture, NABARD, GPSC and Industry.
The launch event will feature two expert-led masterclasses designed to equip startups with essential insights. “Preparing for Your Fundraising Journey” by Mr. Sachin Karnik, Former President of Mumbai Angel Networks and Founder of The Great Unicorn Hunt, will cover key aspects of fundraising, including the pitfalls and upsides of fundraising, timing the fundraise, understanding fundraising jargon, valuation drivers in real scenarios, shareholder agreement considerations, and negotiation tools for valuation mismatches.
“Compliances Made Easy for Early-Stage Startups” by Mr. Sridhar Subramanian, a finance veteran with experience at Coca-Cola and Capillary Technologies, as well as an angel investor, will focus on simplifying compliance processes for startups.
Additionally, a panel discussion on “Building Scalable Startups from Goa” will bring together industry leaders with firsthand experience in scaling businesses. The panelists will include Mr. Anand Prabhudessai, Co-Founder of Turtlemint, a leading Insurtech startup backed by investors such as Sequoia Capital and Nexus Venture Partners; Mr. Prasad Vanga, Founder & CEO of Anthill Ventures, a speed-scaling investment platform supporting startups in sectors like Media & Entertainment, HealthTech, UrbanTech, and Consumer Brands; Mr. Eshan Sharma, from Renevik Solar, a prominent solar energy company specializing in solutions for residential, commercial, and industrial sectors; Mr. Rahat Kulshreshtha, Co-Founder of Quidich Innovation Labs, a company at the forefront of sports broadcasting and filming, integrating AR, AI, and ML with collaborations including ICC, IPL, and Netflix; and Mr. Sumit Mitra, President – International Sales & Marketing at Molbio Diagnostics, representing Goa’s unicorn, a pioneering molecular diagnostics company revolutionizing healthcare accessibility.
Together, these experts will share insights on startup growth and scaling and the opportunities and challenges of scaling from Goa. The discussion will be Moderated by Ms Varsha Adusumilli, Author, Investor, Advisor.
The official launch of GOIC 2025 will include the launch of the website, and an overview of the problem statements that could be solved using technology by Mr. D S Prashant, CEO of the Startup & IT Promotion Cell (SITPC), Government of Goa.
The Department, through the Goa Open Innovation Challenge 2025, aims to drive innovation, create new opportunities, and strengthen Goa’s position as a leading technology hub by providing the critical market access for startups thus supporting the growth of the startup ecosystem.
