Agartala, Tripura, 2nd of October, 2026 : The Digital Startup Acceleration Program for North East (Digi SAPNE) 3.0 was formally launched by Hon’ble Chief Minister of Tripura, Prof. Dr. Manik Saha, at the Agartala Women’s College Auditorium on Thursday (1st October, 2026), marking another significant milestone in strengthening the technology and startup ecosystem of the Northeastern region.
The programme was attended by Pranajit Singha Roy, Hon’ble Minister for Finance, Planning & Coordination and Information Technology, Government of Tripura; Kishor Barman, Hon’ble Minister for Higher Education, Government of Tripura; Kiran Kumar Gitte, Secretary to the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Tripura; Dr. Prashant Kumar Goyal, IAS, Secretary, IT & Finance, Government of Tripura; Shri Rajeshwar Singh Jenwar, Director and Head, Software Industry Promotion Division, Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India; Dr. Gopalakrishna Prabhu, Vice Chancellor, Sikkim Manipal University and Chairman, AIC-SMUTBI; and Shri Jeya Ragul Geshan B., IFS, Government of Tripura, along with startups, students, innovators and ecosystem stakeholders.
Chief Minister Highlights Role of Digi SAPNE and AIC-SMUTBI
Chief Minister Dr. Manik Saha said that the future generation will be more technology-dependent and there is no dearth of talent among the students and youth of the state.
“We need to combine technology with their talent. If we can combine technology with talent, they will be able to involve themselves more in innovative work. The state government wants to use the talent and innovative thinking of students and youth for development. They will be the main architects of building a developed India,” he said.
Chief Minister Prof. (Dr.) Manik Saha said this while inaugurating the Seva First Innovation Challenge 2026, Mukhyamantri Yuva Samachar Yojana (2025-26 academic year) and DG-Swapne 3.0, organised at Mahila Mahavidyalaya in Agartala today.
The programme was organised at the Matangini Pritilata Auditorium of Women’s College.
The Chief Minister also inaugurated the auditorium, which has been renovated and decorated in a new style.
The Chief Minister said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has talked about connecting students, youth and technology to build a Viksit Bharat.
“PM Modi has suggested using the innovative thinking of students and youth more to build a developed India. In the Mann Ki Baat programmes, Prime Minister Narendra Modi guides students and youth on the right path and also acknowledges their innovative thinking. The state government is also keen to use their ideas for the development of the state. As part of this, the Seva First Innovation Challenge 2026, Mukhyamantri Yuva Samachar Yojana and Digi-Swapne 3.0 programmes have been taken up,” said Dr. Saha.
He said that the main ideas of the Innovation Challenge are a clean and stable India, a prosperous India, a healthy and integrated India, an educated and skilled India, and a secure India.
The Chief Minister said that in the last five years, 63,249 people have been assisted with Rs 5,000 each under the Mukhyamantri Yuva Samachar Yojana.
Digi SAPNE 3.0 to Focus on Emerging Opportunities
Implemented by AIC-SMU Technology Business Incubation Foundation (AIC-SMUTBI) with funding support from MeitY, Government of India, Digi SAPNE is designed to identify, mentor and accelerate early-stage startups from the eight Northeastern states.
The third edition will place particular emphasis on areas including tourism, agri-tech and Artificial Intelligence, sectors with significant potential for the Northeast and Tripura.
Through structured acceleration, mentoring, market access, investor engagement and financial support, Digi SAPNE seeks to help promising startups move from early-stage innovation towards sustainable and scalable enterprises.
MeitY Calls for Problem-led Innovation
Addressing the gathering, Shri Rajeshwar Singh Jenwar, Director and Head, Software Industry Promotion Division, MeitY, emphasised that innovation begins with identifying a problem rather than simply developing technology.
He highlighted challenges such as agricultural losses, limited access to healthcare, disaster response and drinking water as opportunities for young entrepreneurs to develop locally relevant solutions. Referring to Tripura’s floods, its GI-tagged Queen Pineapple and its substantial bamboo resources, he urged students and innovators to look at challenges around them as opportunities for entrepreneurship.
He also highlighted the example of HN Technovations, founded at Tripura University under the leadership of Prof. Harjeet Nath, which developed a portable solar and electric water purification system for disaster-relief situations. The solution was used during the Silchar floods and subsequently supplied approximately 5,000 litres of safe drinking water in two days at a relief camp in Gomati district during the August 2024 floods.
Calling upon young people to participate in the Seva First Innovation Challenge, Shri Jenwar urged them to focus on one fundamental question: “What problem can I solve?”
He encouraged students to utilise nearby college laboratories and incubation centres, build multidisciplinary teams and work closely with people who understand the problems being addressed.
₹80 Lakh Distributed to Eight Startups
A key highlight of the programme was the distribution of ₹10 lakh each to eight startups, amounting to ₹80 lakh, selected from Digi SAPNE Cohort 2.0 during the recently concluded Himalayan Investors Meet (HIM ’26) in Gangtok.
The eight startups, representing seven Northeastern states, are:
| Sl. No. | Founder | Startup | State |
| 1 | Dr. Chayanika D. Nath | Labdig Innovations and System Pvt. Ltd. | Assam |
| 2 | Harjeet Nath | HN Technovations Pvt. Ltd. | Tripura |
| 3 | Yaikhomba Rajkumar | Addble Solution Pvt. Ltd. | Manipur |
| 4 | Lakhyajit Hazarika | Stemcorp Dynamics Technologies Pvt. Ltd. | Assam |
| 5 | Badal Nyalang | Mwire Labs Pvt. Ltd. | Meghalaya |
| 6 | Keduolie Mere & Kaushal Bey | Uracab Pvt. Ltd. | Nagaland |
| 7 | Devesh Sharma | Sajilo Services Pvt. Ltd. | Sikkim |
| 8 | Jeremia Remruatpuia | Peipung Pvt. Ltd. | Mizoram |
The financial support is intended to help these startups strengthen their products, technology, operations and market outreach, while positioning them for further investment and commercial scale.
Building a Pan-Northeast Startup Ecosystem
The launch of Digi SAPNE 3.0 in Tripura reinforces the growing collaboration between MeitY, Government of India, Government of Tripura and AIC-SMUTBI to create stronger pathways for innovation and entrepreneurship across the Northeast.
The participation of startups from multiple Northeastern states and the distribution of grants to enterprises emerging from different parts of the region demonstrate the programme’s pan-Northeast approach.
Digi SAPNE seeks to create an ecosystem where entrepreneurs can build businesses rooted in the needs and strengths of the Northeast while accessing national markets, investors, mentors, technology support and institutional networks.
The programme also provides an important platform for students and young innovators to transition from ideas to enterprises and from local solutions to scalable businesses.
About AIC-SMUTBI
AIC-SMU Technology Business Incubation Foundation (AIC-SMUTBI) is an Atal Incubation Centre supported by the Atal Innovation Mission, NITI Aayog, and established in partnership with Sikkim Manipal University. AIC-SMUTBI works to strengthen the startup ecosystem across the Northeast through incubation, acceleration, mentoring, funding facilitation, market access and investor engagement.
Digi SAPNE – Digital Startup Acceleration Program for North East is one of AIC-SMUTBI’s flagship initiatives, supported by MeitY, focused on accelerating technology and digital startups from the eight Northeastern states and connecting them with opportunities at the national and global level.
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