Jharkhand is emerging as a haven for budding entrepreneurs. Take the case of Palash, a brand that has been established by the rural women entrepreneurs of Jharkhand. More than two lakh women are manufacturing, processing, packaging and selling various products under the brand.
Besides, Chief Minister Employment Generation Programme (CMEGP) and the Phulo Jhano Ashirwad Yojana are some of the initiatives of the government that promote entrepreneurship culture.
Experts from various professional fields believe that the state government’s supportive policies have created a favourable environment to promote youngsters to come up with innovative ideas in emerging as well as traditional business ventures.
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In a webinar organised by Outlook, experts like Prof Bhagwan Singh, Dean, School of Management Sciences, Central University of Jharkhand; Sudhir Kumar Singh, Managing Director, Medha Dairy; Khirod Kumar Barik, HR Head, ESL Steel Limited; Sanjeeva Singh, internationally-acclaimed archer and the recipient of Arjuna & Dronacharya Award; and Dr. Anuj Kumar, consultant & surgeon in Bhagwan Mahavir Medica Superspecialty Hospital, Ranchi, expressed their views on entrepreneurship opportunities in Jharkhand.
Prof Bhagwan Singh said that Jharkhand is a state with varied geographical topography and people are very creative here. According to him, JHARCRAFT (Jharkhand Silk Textile and Handicraft Development Corporation Ltd which is a government of Jharkhand undertaking) is one such initiative where the creativity of tribal and rural folks comes to the fore.
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He suggests that Unmanned Aerial Vehicle such as the Drone sector is coming up in the country which opens up a lot of opportunities for youth. “The second area which I think presents entrepreneurship opportunities is the travel and tourism sector. We have a lot of good and wonderful tourist sports,” he said.
Highlighting the importance of the dairy sector in Jharkhand, Sudhir Kumar Singh, MD, Medha Dairy said that normally people know Jharkhand for its mines but with the increasing popularity of dairy farming, people will now remember Jharkhand for milk and mines both.
“Dairy sector will provide for nutrition and mining will generate revenue for the state. There is a huge scope in the dairy sector. In 2014, we used to collect only 11,000 liters of milk daily and you will be surprised that within the span of four to five years, our daily collection shot up to 1.7 lakh litres with 33,000 persons associated with this business at the village level,” Singh said.
Adding that the dairy business is attracting youngsters too, Singh cited an instance of a person named Indra Dev who was working as an engineer in Mangalore but decided to return to his village in Jharkhand and started his work as a dairy farmer.
Khirod Kumar Barik, HR Head, ESL Steel Limited is of the view that Jharkhand has a huge scope for startups. “We are dedicated to the growth of Jharkhand. Our focus is entrepreneurship. We are nurturing sports talent in and around the state,” Barik said, highlighting the company’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities.
He added, “We teach business models and entrepreneurship skills to youngsters in rural areas so that we can make them business ready for any investor. Jharkhand has a huge potential for entrepreneurship in sectors such as organic farming, and the dairy industry among others.”
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Barik believes that the state government’s policies are quite supportive of youth entrepreneurship. “If we can continue to take the public-private partnership ahead, it is going to be a win-win situation for both,” he said, adding that the recent launch of the Jharkhand State Solar Policy 2022 will help phase out traditional energy sources and minimize carbon emissions in the country.
Internationally-acclaimed archer, Sanjeeva Singh, who is also the recipient of the Arjuna & Dronacharya Award feels that the fitness and wellness sector has emerged as a huge area for enterprising youth in the post-Covid era as people have realized the importance of keeping good health.
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“Wellness can be organic food, multi-gaming, physical training, online fitness sector, etc. Youngsters can open up academies that are entrepreneurial in nature with the government’s support,” he said.
As far as the medical field is concerned, Dr. Anuj Kumar, Consultant & Surgeon, at Bhagwan Mahavir Medica Superspecialty Hospital says, “I see entrepreneurship in the medical field in two ways. One is the private clinics and dispensaries opening in the state. The second one is public health entrepreneurship which is far more important than private entrepreneurship.”
He says that there are lots of things happening in the private sector where new clinics and dispensaries are coming up.
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“The Government of Jharkhand has started telemedicine services which is a very good initiative. People in rural areas can now communicate with the super-specialists directly through telemedicine,” Kumar said adding that technology can help fulfill this gap and the government is trying to leverage it for the welfare of the state.
Foreseeing that the future belongs to entrepreneurs and innovators, the State government, under the leadership of the Chief Minister, is charting an empowering system where the youth gets plenty of job opportunities.
At the same time, financial support is being provided to those who want to be self-employed. The government is giving full opportunity to the youth of the state so that their talent and skills can be used well in the development and progress.
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Chief Minister Hemant Soren asserted these things while addressing a grant-based loan distribution awareness program under the state level (CMEGP) organized at Deoghar. The Chief Minister said that till now the youth of this state moved to other states and big cities for jobs.
He reckoned that now the people here will be provided employment in their homes, village and city. To promote self-employment in the state, the government has initiated the Chief Minister Employment Generation Scheme.
“We are making such a system, where there will be plenty of jobs and self-employment opportunities. The talent and skills of the youth will be channelised well in the development of the state.”
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Hemant Soren
Chief Minister, Jharkhand
“In 2014, we used to collect only 11,000 liters of milk daily and you will be surprised that within the span of four to five years, our daily collection shot up to 1.7 lakh litres with 33,000 persons associated with this business at village level.”
Sudhir Kumar Singh
Managing Director, Medha Dairy
“We are dedicated to the growth of Jharkhand. Our focus is entrepreneurship. We are nurturing sports talent in and around the state. Through our skill centres, we are trying to provide entrepreneurial skills in the youth.”
Khirod Kumar Barik
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HR Head, ESL Steel Limited
“I see entrepreneurship in the medical field in two ways. One is the private clinics and dispensaries opening in the state. The second one is public health entrepreneurship which is far more important than private entrepreneurship.”
Dr Anuj Kumar
Consultant & surgeon in Bhagwan Mahavir Medica Superspecialty Hospital, Ranchi
“Youngsters can open up academies which are entrepreneurial in nature with government’s support. They can take up different elements of the sportsand a complete ecosystem with physiotherapists, psychologists, nutritionists, dieticians, etc can come up.”
Sanjeeva Singh
Internationally-acclaimed archer and the recipient of Arjuna & Dronacharya Award
