Entry And Exit Policy For Startups
Introduction
The Innovation and Start-up Policy 2021 for National Institute of Technology Raipur (IISP) has been approved by the BoG of NIT Raipur, which will enable the institute to actively engage students, alumni, faculty/staff and other stakeholders in innovation and entrepreneurship related activities. The Policy is designed to create and nurture entrepreneurial ecosystem within the institute and amalgamate the same within the academic curriculum/system. This framework will also help in bringing in uniformity, in line with MoE guidelines, for managing IPR ownership, technology licensing and start-up policy. This policy has been derived from the IISP of NIT Raipur, and any other details not covered here will be governed by IISP- NIT Raipur.
Institute Startup Committee (ISC) of NIT Raipur
An Institute Startup Committee (ISC) will be formed which will provide the essential guidelines/ screening criteria/ other norms for Startups to be incubated and supported. The following shall be the constitution of ISC:
- Head, CDC, NIT Raipur, Ex-officio, President of the Committee
- Dean Academics (or Representative), NIT Raipur, Ex-officio
- Dean Faculty Welfare (or Representative), NIT Raipur, Ex-officio
- The other members of the ISC shall be the following:
- The Faculty I/C, Innovation Cell
- The Faculty I/C, Entrepreneurship Cell
- An Alumni Startup Founder
- A representative from Local Entrepreneurial/Startup Ecosystem Enabler
The constitution of the committee will be approved by the Director, NIT Raipur.
Start-up Eligibility
Applicants are eligible for start-up facility at NIT Raipur Foundation For Innovation And Entrepreneurship (NITRR-FIE) provided its stakeholders or partners are from one of the following categories:
A
Student OF NIT RAIPUR
b
Alumni of NIT Raipur
C
Faculty member of NIT Raipur
d
Non-teaching staff of NIT Raipur
e
ANY OUTSIDE APPLICANT HAVING RELEVANT IDEASAS PER THE MANDATE OF NITRR-FIE
All proposals from any of the above categories of applicants will be approved based on the screening by NITRR-FIE.
Start-up Admissibility PROCEDURE
Applicants are eligible for start-up facility at NIT Raipur Foundation For Innovation And Entrepreneurship (NITRR-FIE) provided its stakeholders or partners are from one of the following categories:
a
For Applicants from NIT Raipur
The applications for admission of startups at NITRR-FIE shall be processed once the applicant(s) has taken due recommendation from the Institute Startup Committee (ISC), which will evaluate and carry out the selection procedure before forwarding the same to NITRR-FIE for further screening.
b
For Applicants from outside NIT Raipur
Individuals, Companies or Institutions, which are nor related to NIT Raipur, will directly address the application to NITRR-FIE.
The applicants in both the categories (a) and (b) above will be evaluated by NITRR-FIE for further screening and selection as per the following steps.
- The application should include a detailed Business Plan. The business plan must cover all aspects including: Startup description, value proposition, products and services, market and competition analysis, revenue model, milestones and timelines, development and marketing plan, organizational structure, core team, risk analysis, funding requirements and projected financials. Applicants may give additional information as they think would help in the assessment of their proposal.
- If the initial evaluation of the business plan/ executive summary is positive, NITRR-FIE will arrange a meeting with the startup founders, during which the startup will be expected to make a presentation before the experts. After the presentation, a final decision will be made regarding the acceptance of the start-up for incubation.
- Human subject related research in startup should get clearance from ethics committee of NIT Raipur.
- Agreement: The admitted startup has to enter into an agreement with NITRR-FIE. Format of Agreement will be provided be NITRR-FIE.
- Apart from the above NITRR-FIE will be free to add/delete screening criteria as per the recommendation of the Board of Directors.
Infrastructure Support and Other Services to Startups
Upon admission to incubation center, the following infrastructural facilities will be offered to the incubate companies on an individual basis, apart from a set of shared/ common infrastructure mentioned hereinafter.
- Office Space
- Internet Connection
- Access to computing facilities
Besides, NIT Raipur will facilitate the startups to access departmental laboratories and other resources in the institute. Access to departmental resources will be possible through ISC, which will coordinate with the concerned departments. Further usage of such resources shall be in conformity with the policies of NIT Raipur. The charges for institutional resources may be waved-off for the students/faculty/staff of NIT Raipur, but will be applicable for any outside incubatee as per the institute norms.
Apart from the specific infrastructures as stated above, NITRR-FIE Lab and all other facilities such as Meeting/ Conference Room, Teleconferencing, Recreation and Rejuvenation Facilities, Cafeteria etc. will be shared by all startups.
Other Services
In addition to physical infrastructure, NITRR-FIE intends to provide other support and services including,
a
Startup registration and filings
b
HR Services
c
Legal Advice
d
Intellectual Property Rights (Copyrights, Trade Marks, Patent) filings
e
Training/Conferences/Workshops
f
Seed Funding support
g
Governmental Agency funding
h
Networking and linkages with NIT Raipur Alumni for mentorship, funding expertise and market access
i
Venture capitalists / Angels / Investors introductions and networking
j
Showcasing incubated companies through networking and events
k
Entrepreneurship meets
l
Any other activity to support Innovation and Startup culture as deemed fit by ISC and NITRR-FIE
Mentoring and Advisory Services
- Specialized mentors may be made available, based on demand, to the startups to assist with strategic areas or to provide project-oriented consultation. In such cases the mentor has to be compensated by the company either by equity sharing or by providing fees as per the mutual consent.
- An incubated company may avail the consulting services by empaneled professionals at their end. Hiring of any consultant from outside directly by the startup shall have to be paid directly with information to NITRR-FIE.
Periodic Assessment
NITRR-FIE will evaluate the performance of startups, who will be required to submit information on a quarterly (every three months) basis in a prescribed format. Additionally, startups also need to submit their progress report to ISC, NIT Raipur. It is essential for the startups to satisfy minimum norms of progress to get the continued support.
Tenure in Incubation Centre
Companies will be permitted to stay in the incubation center, to begin with, for a period of 24 months that may be extended to another 12 (6+6) months after review at each stage. A nominal monthly charge, as fixed by the NITRR-FIE will be levied to a company for this period of 36 months. NITRR-FIE may, at its own discretion, permit companies to extend their stay further for a maximum period of another 12 months.
Rent
Rent for the office space to the startups will be fixed by BOD of NITRR-FIE and will be revised as per the market rate.
Exit
Startup should leave the incubator under the following circumstances
- Completion of stay for 36 months, unless the stay is extended by NITRR-FIE.
- Under performance of the startup: Criteria for the same will be decided and applied by BOD, NITRR-FIE on a case-to-case basis.
- A startup may exit at any time with a prior notice of 3 months and after clearance of all dues from NITRR-FIE and NIT Raipur.
Equity
In lieu of support and services to be provided, the incubate companies will be charged in the form of equity and/or revenue sharing [NISP 2.d, pp 12]. NITRR-FIE will hold the equity of 2% for the service provided if the incubatee stays for initial two years and 5% if the company stays more than that [NISP 3.j, pp 14]. The percentage of equity and revenue sharing will be reviewed from time to time by NITRR-FIE and may be negotiable based on the startup idea.
Product Ownership Rights for Technologies Developed at Institute
- When institute facilities/funds are used substantially or when IPR is developed as a part of curriculum/ academic/pre-incubation activity, IPR is to be jointly owned by inventors and the institute as per the prevailing IPR policy of NIT Raipur.
- For the startups pre-incubated at NIT Raipur and subsequently incubated at NITRR-FIE, the NITRR-FIE will hold equity on behalf of NIT Raipur. For such students the IPR norms will be applicable as per the IPR policy of NITRR-FIE.
- On the other hand, if product/ IPR is developed by innovators not using any institute resources and facilities, outside office hours (for staff and faculty) or not as a part of curriculum by student, then product/ IPR will be entirely owned by inventors in proportion to the contributions made by them. In this case, inventors candecide to license the technology to third parties or use the technology the way they deem fit.
- If there is a dispute in ownership, a committee constituted by Director, NIT Raipur will examine the issue after meeting the inventors and help them settle this.
Others
- ISC and NITRR-FIE do not guarantee success and/or feasibility of the technology transferred from NIT Raipur. NIT Raipur or any person representing them shall not be liable for any acts or omissions of the startup.
- Any grievance on part of Student/Faculty/Staff engaged in startup activities shall be resolved by CEO of NITRR-FIE in consultation with appropriate authority of NIT Raipur.
- Power to amend the policy: The above policy is subject to periodic review and amendment at any time by NIT Raipur.
All disputes shall be referred to an independent arbitrator appointed by the Director NIT Raipur. The arbitration will be governed by the provisions of Indian arbitration and conciliation Act 1996 as may be amended or replaced as the case may be. The place of arbitration shall be Raipur.
The provisions of this policy are subject to change, in case a relevant (corresponding) policy is changed by the institute or Govt. of India (GoI). The change in policy due to above reasons shall be affective, concurrent to the change of corresponding policy by the institute or GoI.
ANNEXURE
Format of Application for Incubation Under NITRR-FIE
The NIT Raipur Foundation of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NITRR-FIE) offers a whole gamut of incubation facilities and services to prospective entrepreneurs and innovators to convert their innovative ideas into commercially viable products. NITRR-FIE incubates ventures in technology, engineering and other interdisciplinary areas.
ELIGIBILITY
- Any startup, registered in India, developing technology-enabled solutions, fulfilling the following criteria, can apply.
- If it’s turnover for any of the financial years has not exceeded INR 100 crore.
- Is working towards innovation, development, deployment or commercialization of new products, process or services driven technology or intellectual property.