Nimirnthu Nil’ Initiative Unveiled to Foster Student Entrepreneurship

Swift Summary

• MSME Minister T.M. Anbarasan launched Nimirnthu Nil, an initiative aimed at fostering innovation and entrepreneurship among youth in higher education institutions.
• The programme will train 30.5 lakh students in entrepreneurship and innovation over five years, with a budget of ₹19.57 crore. It is expected to impact 2,000 institutions annually.
• Hackathon competitions are being conducted to cultivate a culture of innovation among school students as part of the initiative through the Entrepreneurship Progress and Innovation Institute (EDII).
• Entrepreneurship development training was inaugurated for 9,000 beneficiaries from Tier-II and Tier-III cities, with awards distributed to government school students (Classes 6-12) under a UNICEF-supported program.
• Over the past four years, EDII has trained 71,735 individuals in entrepreneurship while promoting awareness among 21.86 lakh school students and 6.40 lakh college students about innovation and entrepreneurial skills.
• Key attendees included Additional Chief Secretary Atul Anand, EDII Executive Director R. ambalavanan, Joint Director Ramakrishnan from School Education Department, and UNICEF representative Manasa Vasudevan.

Indian Opinion analysis
The Nimirnthu Nil initiative represents a focused investment by Tamil Nadu’s MSME ministry into cultivating an entrepreneurial culture amongst millions of young learners across educational tiers over the next five years-a move aligned with broad