Nagpur’s Startup Ecosystem Takes Center Stage at Viksit Bharat Start-up Conclave

NAGPUR | April 10, 2026 – The Incubein Centre at RTMNU University Campus was abuzz with innovation and entrepreneurial spirit yesterday as the Viksit Bharat Start-up Conclave Nagpur.

Organised by the Vidarbha Economic Development (VED) Council to commemorate its 30 th anniversary celebrations .

The event was jointly organised by VED and LEMON Ideas, and RTMNU Incubein Foundation to position Nagpur as a primary growth engine for the nation’s

The event commenced with a formal inaugural ceremony attended by Ms Rina Sinha President VEd Council , Mr Deepak Menaria Founder Lemon Ideas , Dr Abhay Deshmukh CEO Incubein Foundation and Guest of Honour Mr. Devendra Parekh, Past President VED who highlighted VED’s contribution towards economic development of Vidarbha through its efforts in MIHAN , Agrovision , Higher Education institutions and appealed to the start ups to set up their ventures here .

Mr. Prashant Ugemuge, Managing Director of Vidarbha Infotech Pvt. Ltd. (VIPL), Lead Partner of the event was felicitated for his contributions to the industry by Mrs. Rina Sinha, President of the VED Council. Mr Prashant addressed the startups and motivated them to set up their units in Nagpur and gave many insights on succesfull entrepreneurship .

Mr. Aatish Jindal, Joint Secretary is the Event Project Director. The leadership presence was further bolstered by Mr. Aliasger Wagh, Secretary of the VED Council, alongside a dedicated team of key members and contributors, including Varun Vijaywargi, Amit Yenurkar, Rahul Upganlawar, Pankaj Mahajan, Navin Malewar, Arun Hazare, Anish Buche, Rajendra Korde, A.N Radha and Hitesh Bodkhe were present from VED and Amol Muley from Lemon Ideas .

The first day featured a series of “Knowledge Sessions” designed to equip founders with both technical and emotional resilience. Topics ranged from “Spirituality and Emotional Well-being” to “Celebrating Failures,” encouraging entrepreneurs to find success within setbacks. A pivotal session on “Nagpur as a Growth Engine for Startups” highlighted the strategic advantages of the region for new enterprises where the panelists were Mr. Dilip Kamdar noted industrialist andVEd founder member and Mr Mukesh Asher Shared their views moderated by Mr Abhay Deshmukh.

In a move to nurture the next generation, the conclave hosted a Training Bootcamp for Juniors, where young participants engaged in validation exercises powered by Design Thinking. Simultaneously, the Innopreneurs Finale saw finalists presenting their ideas across four parallel tracks, evaluated by a specialized jury.

The event extended today begin with the Junior Innopreneurs event at 10:00 am, which will be inaugurated by Chief Guest Ms. Vijayalakshmi Bidari, Divisional Commissioner, Nagpur with Key note speaker Mr Vilas Kale , Past President and founder VED Council .

Ms. Bidari will formally inaugurate the Startup Expo, a showcase of innovation and youth-led ideas of more than 20 startups.

The grand finale of the two-day event will conclude with a prestigious Valedictory Ceremony from 6:00 pm Mr. Pankaj Bhoyar, Minister of State (School Education & Home), Government of Maharashtra, will grace the occasion as the Chief Guest. Joining him as Guests of Honor are Dr. Vipin Itankar, IAS Commissioner of the NMC and Dr. Manali Kshirsagar, Vice-Chancellor of RTM Nagpur University. This final session will feature the distribution of the Innopreneurs Season 12 awards and the Nagpur Startup Awards, celebrating the best in entrepreneurial talent.

The startup expo is open to public and this day long expo will give an opportunity to visitors to see innovation and entrepreneurship ideas .

Regard’s
VED Council