The State government’s recent decision to introduce a separate ELEVATE track for startups outside the Bengaluru region has been welcomed by Karnataka Digital Economy Mission’s (KDEM) Mysuru cluster head Sudheer Shankar.

Participating in a panel discussion on ‘Policy Meets Practice: Building Mysuru’s Startup Ecosystem from Both Ends’ at the Mundhe Banni Meetup Mysuru 2026 organised in Mysuru on Saturday, Mr. Shankar informed the audience that the Government of Karnataka’s flagship grant programme ELEVATE, which identifies and supports promising startups at various stages of their entrepreneurial journey with grants from ₹50 lakh to ₹1 crore, hitherto pitted startups in tier 2 and tier 3 regions in an “unfair competition” with starts up in Bengaluru.

Now, the government has come up with a separate track of ELEVATE for Beyond Bengaluru startups. The introduction of separate tracks will provide more opportunities for startups in the ‘Beyond Bengaluru’ region, including Mysuru, to benefit from the grants under ELEVATE, he said.

The four tracks for ELEVATE include one for the General category, which is open to startups across domains, Shakti for ventures with at least 51% women ownership, Unnati, focused on SC/ST founders, and Aspire for startups in tier 2 and tier 3 regions.

The panel discussion, which also featured the CEO of SJCE-STEP Shivashankar and the CEO of Mundhe Banni Vasanth Shetty, also explored how institutions, policymakers, incubators, entrepreneurs, and industry stakeholders can work together to accelerate startup growth in Mysuru and strengthen Karnataka’s innovation ecosystem. 

The discussion underscored the importance of mentorship, ecosystem collaboration, policy support, and community-led initiatives in nurturing future entrepreneurs.

The panel discussion was part of Munde Banni Meetup Mysuru, organised jointly by the entrepreneurial community of Munde Banni along with SJCE-STEP, with a view to bringing together founders, aspiring entrepreneurs, startup enthusiasts, students, innovators, and ecosystem leaders in the city. 

Held at the R.P. Singhania Auditorium, JSS Science and Technology University (JSS STU), “The event witnessed a packed auditorium, with registrations surpassing initial capacity projections, underscoring the growing interest in entrepreneurship among Mysuru’s youth, startup founders, and innovation enthusiasts,” said a statement from the organisers.

The overwhelming response reflected the city’s rapidly evolving startup culture and highlighted the need for more such community-driven platforms that foster learning, collaboration, and meaningful industry connections, the statement added. 

The event commenced with a keynote address by the director of JSS Technical Education Division and the Pro-Chancellor of JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research (JSS AHER), B. Suresh, who shared an academic perspective on entrepreneurship. He emphasised the importance of innovation-driven education and encouraged students to embrace entrepreneurship as a pathway to creating impactful solutions and future-ready enterprises.

Founder and CEO of AIM High Consulting, Bengaluru, N. Ravi Shankar, spoke on building large enterprises from smaller towns. Drawing from his entrepreneurial journey, he highlighted how ambition, execution, and perseverance can enable founders from emerging cities to build nationally and globally relevant businesses.

The event also featured a session by the Founder of HiveMinds, Jyothirmayee J.T., who spoke on go-to-market strategy, execution excellence, and real-world lessons in taking products successfully to the market. 

The Founder Spotlight session, organised as part of the event, featured Pruthvi M.P., Founder of GenVision Technologies; Nishanth P., Founder of Carnad Engineering; and Lavanya N., Founder of Samparkisu Pvt. Ltd., who shared their experiences of building ventures from the ground up, discussing challenges, failures, turning points, and lessons learned along the way.