IIM Calcutta Innovation Park and Tripura Rural Livelihoods Mission Launch the Women Entrepreneurs Incubator Programme to Boost Rural Livelihoods
Agartala, April, 16:IIM Calcutta Innovation Park (IIMCIP) in partnership with the Tripura Rural Livelihood Mission (TRLM), Government of Tripura, has officially launched its women entrepreneurs incubator programme,marking the transition from programme announcement toon-ground implementation.
This programme is being implemented under theDeendayal Antyodaya Yojana–National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM), a flagship initiative of the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India, and follows the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between IIMCIP and TRLM earlier this year.
The launch was marked by the unveiling of the application portal at a state-level workshop held atPragna Bhavan in Agartala, inaugurated byShri Abhishek Singh, IAS, Secretary, Rural Development Department, Government of Tripura, in the presence of senior TRLM leadership, district and block officials, and Self-Help Group (SHG) members from across the state.
The launch workshop brought together grassroots women entrepreneurs and programme stakeholders to drive awareness and participation in the programme. The application portal will serve as the primary entry point for identifying high-potential women-led enterprises across Tripura, ensuring wider access, transparency, anda structured onboarding process.
The collaboration between IIMCIP and Tripura Rural Livelihoods Mission aims to identify, support, train, and mentor at least150 enterprisesin the manufacturing and service sectors across all districts of Tripura over the next three years. The initiative seeks to enable a minimum15 percent year-on-year revenue growth, create local employment, and develop scalable and replicable business modelswith the broader mission of transforming rural livelihoods across the region.
At the heart of this initiative is a shared vision to alleviate rural poverty by building growth-oriented, formally registered, and financially self-sustaining micro enterprises led by women from Self Help Groups (SHGs). IIMCIP will leverage its deep expertise in startup incubation, mentoring, and enterprise development to bring world-class support directly to rural Tripura.
“The Government of Tripura firmly believes that empowered women are the foundation of resilient rural economies. Through this collaboration with IIMCIP, women entrepreneurs will gain access to institutional knowledge, structured mentorship, and focused capital support—tools they have long needed to thrive in the formal business landscape. This initiative will also lay the groundwork for a replicable model of rural entrepreneurship across Tripura,” saidAbhishek Singh, IAS, Secretary, Rural Development, Government of Tripura.
Under the partnership, IIMCIP will play an end-to-end incubation support role:
- Lead a focused outreach programme across the state, leveraging TRLM’s extensive grassroots network to identify growth-oriented SHG-member-owned micro-enterprises with demonstrated potential.
- Design and administer a competitive Challenge Fund mechanism, providing up to 75% of an enterprise’s fund requirement for growth, including capital expenditure and working capital as a grant or soft loan.
- Deliver 64 hours of in-person business basics training, domain-specific technical training, and digital learning modules as part of a comprehensive capacity-building curriculum.
- Provide professional business mentoring and hands-on support over an 18-month engagement to help enterprises achieve targeted revenue growth.
- Facilitate critical market linkages, branding and packaging support, finance linkages, and enterprise formalisation.
- Develop partnerships with technology and innovation organisations for the direct benefit of rural enterprises.
- Create replicable enterprise model toolkits, knowledge assets, and communication products to enable wider scaling across Tripura and other NRLM states.
“This partnership with TRLM is yet another opportunity for IIMCIP to deliver the benefits of world-class incubation directly into the hands of rural women entrepreneurs. This aligns with our commitment towards strengthening both women entrepreneurship in India and our indigenous capability. We look forward to working with Tripura’s SHG ecosystem to nurture women-owned and led enterprises with the skills, networks, and confidence to grow sustainable and scalable businesses that will uplift their families and communities for generations to come.” saidDr VK Rai, CEO, IIM Calcutta Innovation Park (IIMCIP).
