By Imlisanen Jamir
Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal recently stirred debate when he questioned whether India’s startups should be content delivering ice cream and groceries or strive instead for breakthroughs in semiconductors, robotics, and AI. It was part provocation, part reality check. India, he argued, cannot afford to settle for convenience-driven entrepreneurship in a world where nations like China are surging ahead in deep-tech.
Strip away the political bluster, and Goyal’s call is valid. A country of 1.4 billion needs to dream big. But ambition without context is just grandstanding. And in places like Nagaland, the context speaks volumes.
Since the launch of the Nagaland Startup Policy in 2019, 296 startups have been registered—creating just over 268 jobs, according to the state’s Director of Industries and Commerce in May 2024. These aren’t unicorns; they’re small businesses rooted in local needs—agribusiness, food processing, logistics. They are what the current workforce, shaped by decades of under-resourced education and weak infrastructure, is equipped to build.
The real issue isn’t lack of ambition. It’s that the ground isn’t ready yet for the kind of moonshots Goyal envisions. Quality education, especially in STEM fields, remains patchy in Nagaland. Many schools still lack basic lab facilities. Internet access is unreliable in rural areas. The idea of training a generation of AI engineers or robotics developers here feels remote not because the youth lack potential, but because the ecosystem hasn’t been built to support that kind of future—yet.
This is slowly changing. The state government has launched Entrepreneurship Development Cells in high schools. Digital learning tools like smart boards and multimedia content are being introduced to help bridge the learning gap in science and math. Institutions like NIELIT Kohima are mentoring young tech minds. Even local ed-tech ventures like NagaEd are showing that the will to innovate exists.
But building a deep-tech workforce takes time. First, you need better classrooms. Then better teachers. Then advanced curriculum. Then institutions to sustain research and development. None of this happens overnight. India, as a whole, spends under 1% of its GDP on R&D. In Nagaland, where there are no major research parks or technical universities, the gap is even starker.
So while we should absolutely aim for transformative tech, we must also be honest about where we’re starting from. For now, local founders will keep solving practical problems—connecting farmers to markets, digitizing local businesses, and creating products that make sense in their world. And that’s not failure. That’s relevance.
The goal should be a ladder—not a leap. Support grassroots ventures today while planting seeds for the deep-tech ecosystem of tomorrow. Skill-building, better infrastructure, targeted funding, and an education system that prepares students for a complex future—these are the long-term investments that will pay off.
As for the buzzwords—AI, quantum, robotics—let them be aspirational, not performative. There’s no virtue in demanding moonshots from a workforce that hasn’t yet been trained for liftoff. Let’s build an environment where a young person in Dimapur or Mon can dream not only of launching a food business, but one day leading a space-tech startup—and have the tools to get there.
And yes, there’s still space for the social sciences and ethical debate in this conversation, but for now, let’s focus on laying the foundation—one school, one startup, one skilling program at a time.
Goyal’s challenge is one we should accept. But let’s do it with our feet on the ground, and our eyes fixed firmly on a future we’re still learning how to build.
Comments can be sent to imlisanenjamir@gmail.com
