July 7, 2011
Coimbatore Campus
 

Self-confidence, leadership, creativity and tenacity … just a few of the many traits needed for successful business ventures.
 

Every budding entrepreneur dreams big, but to make dreams a reality it takes courage.
 

Helping support B.Tech. and M.Tech. students as they reach for their dreams, the Amrita Centre for Entrepreneurship (ACE) at the Coimbatore campus recently hosted a three-day entrepreneurship camp.
 

The camp was sponsored by the Department of Science and Technology in association with Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India, Ahmedabad.
 

In his opening address on Indian values and entrepreneurship, Prof. L. S. Ganesh, Department of Management Studies from IIT Madras emphasized the need to sustain business ventures, after the initial success.
 

“Entrepreneurship is not for the light-hearted, but those with a zeal and passion for success,” he said.
 

During the second day of the camp, the President of Coimbatore District Small Industries Association, Mr. Kandhaswami, lectured on the Technical and Commercial Aspects of SSI Business.
 

Prof. Deepak Gupta’s lecture on Innovation in Business was followed by Mr. Balachandran’s talk on creativity and risk-taking as indispensable attributes for business excellence.
 

Mr. Sashidharan Pillai, DGM, State Bank of Travancore, informed students about exciting opportunities for budding entrepreneurs seeking venture capital to start new enterprises.
 

For many fledgling entrepreneurs like final year M.Tech. student Rajesh Venkatesh, who started a design firm with friends, the camp proved beneficial. “It helped me gain more knowledge about what it takes to run a company,” he said.
 

“ACE knows that becoming an entrepreneur isn’t easy,” explained the organizers. “Not all new businesses survive, which is why ACE was founded with the commitment to help inspired students achieve their goals.”
 

“The role of ACE is to create and support entrepreneurs. We would like to create a powerful ACE community by bringing in institutional members and seeking support from faculty, mentors and experts.”
 

ACE aims to provide the necessary resources and training so students can realize their dreams. Students’ dreams really are in reach, after all, as Prof. C. Parameswaran, Director, Corporate and International Relations emphasized; they have a good example to follow.
 

“Our Chancellor Amma is one of the finest entrepreneurs. What began as a small ITI in a remote village in the early eighties has now metamorphosed into one of the best universities in India,” he said.