Prof Tejbanta S Chingtham, CEO of AIC-SMU-TBI and member of the National Startup Advisory Council at the launch of the second cohort of DigiSAPNE 2.0 in Dimapur on January 19. (Morung Photo)
Morung Express News
Dimapur | January 19
Educentre, in collaboration with the Atal Incubation Centre – Sikkim Manipal University Technology Business Incubation Foundation (AIC-SMU-TBI) and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, hosted the launch of the second cohort of DigiSAPNE (Startup Acceleration Programme for the North East). The event took place at Espace, Dimapur, on January 19.
Prof Tejbanta S Chingtham, CEO of AIC-SMU-TBI and member of the National Startup Advisory Council, outlined the initiative. He stated that DigiSAPNE 2.0 aims to support ventures that have established initial traction but face growth stagnation. The programme will select a cohort of 12 startups, with a mandate to include at least one representative from every North Eastern state. Participants will receive mentorship, market access, branding support, investor connections, and funding opportunities up to Rs 80 lakh.
Chingtham noted that while the programme is sector-agnostic — open to domains ranging from Agritech to Artificial Intelligence — there is a preference for technology-enabled businesses capable of fast scaling. He advised applicants to register as Private Limited companies to facilitate equity investment, explaining that the program aims to help startups raise capital through equity rather than debt financing to avoid repayment pressures.
Data cited regarding the previous cohort indicated that the 12 participants raised nearly Rs 7 crore in external funding, generated Rs 10 crore in revenue, and created approximately 200 jobs. A startup from Nagaland in the previous batch received a grant of Rs 10 lakh.
According to Chingtham, India is today the world's third-largest startup ecosystem with over 2 lakh startups.
The co-founder of Sutsung Enterprise Private Limited, Jongpong Chiten, a previous Digi-SAPNE winner, shared his experience during the event. The waste management venture, which utilises Black Soldier Flies to process organic waste, reported processing 500–600 kg of waste daily as of December 2025. Chiten credited the programme’s 1000 hours of mentorship for aiding their financial discipline and expansion into bioplastics.
Lucy Ngouri, Functional Manager of Startup Nagaland, addressed the gathering regarding the local ecosystem. She stated that the Nagaland Startup Policy is implemented to guide entrepreneurs and asserted the department's readiness to support genuine ventures.
