Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India

Pick the right route

• Technology startups in manufacturing, healthcare, renewable energy or food and agribusiness: apply to the CrAdLE incubator.
• MSMEs with a specific business problem: register for the Business Clinic Programme.
• Patents, trademarks, designs or geographical indications: approach the IP Facilitation Centre.
• Gujarat students or recent graduates with an early idea: ask about the SSIP grant, which EDII handles as a grantee institute.

How CrAdLE applications work

• Get the application form from the CrAdLE office or download it from the CrAdLE website.
• After the initial scrutiny, you are asked for a detailed proposal. It includes a business plan and details of the technology or IP the company is built on.
• Startup enquiries and general enquiries go to info@cradle-edii.in.

What CrAdLE reviews

• The innovation proposed, and whether it has a working proof of concept.
• Financial feasibility, resource planning and scalability.
• Sustainability, team composition and social relevance.

Before you apply

• Intake dates for CrAdLE and the Business Clinic were not stated on the pages we reviewed, so confirm them with the team before you prepare an application.

The Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII) was launched in 1983 as a national resource institute for entrepreneurship education, research, training and startup incubation. Its main campus is at P.O. Bhat in Gandhinagar district, Gujarat, and its technology business incubator, CrAdLE, is based in Ahmedabad.

How the institute works

EDII organises its work across several departments: policy advocacy and research, entrepreneurship education, government projects, CSR partnerships, innovation and technology, international outreach, and SME development. The SME Development department offers business development services and the Business Clinic Programme for MSMEs. The Department of Innovation and Technology promotes technology-led entrepreneurship and works to strengthen incubation activity at EDII.

The institute also runs post-graduate diploma programmes in management, and it has set up entrepreneurship development centres in several Indian states and in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam, Uzbekistan and Rwanda.

Incubation at CrAdLE

CrAdLE (Centre for Advancing and Launching Enterprises) is a technology business incubator and a section 8 company. It focuses on manufacturing, healthcare, renewable energy and food and agribusiness. Admission is open to companies, proprietorships and LLPs working on innovation, development or commercialisation of technology- or IP-driven products, processes or services.

CrAdLE's stated objectives are to nurture technology startups at an early stage, help them overcome early difficulties, and strengthen their business skills. It also aims to give them a platform to commercialise technologies developed in academic and R&D institutions, and to support business networking for faster growth.

Incubatees get fully furnished offices with 24-hour access, internet connectivity, board and conference rooms, a library, mentoring, business plan help, access to professionals in legal, financial, accounting and IP matters, and networking events with investors and industry. CrAdLE also helps startups look for funding under Gujarat and central government schemes for startups and MSMEs. Hostel accommodation is available on a payable basis.

Support for IP, MSMEs and student startups

The IPFC also aims to raise awareness of intellectual property rights among entrepreneurs and innovators, and to help them understand IP law, protection and commercialisation. It works with IP attorneys and agencies to offer end-to-end support.

The Intellectual Property Facilitation Centre (IPFC) helps startups and MSMEs with IP filings, covering patents, trademarks, designs and geographical indications. It was set up with sponsorship from the Ministry of MSME under the MSME Innovative Scheme, and it reimburses expenses for IP registration and protection.

EDII is also a grantee institute for the Gujarat Student Startup and Innovation Policy (SSIP). That grant supports proof-of-concept work for innovators and startups where at least one co-founder is a current student, or an alumnus of the last five years, of a university in Gujarat.

Scale and results

EDII's homepage reports results over the last five years, including 667,426 total beneficiaries and 108,162 enterprises promoted. CrAdLE's website reports 120 startups incubated, 450 jobs generated and 50 startups that received seed funding. These are the institutes' own figures, and the pages do not give a date for the CrAdLE numbers.

The two websites describe CrAdLE's sector focus in different words. The CrAdLE selection page lists manufacturing, healthcare, renewable energy and food and agribusiness, while EDII's About page lists food and agri business, renewable energy and healthcare. The CrAdLE page is the more specific of the two.

Who runs it and where

EDII was established under the patronage of IDBI Bank, ICICI, IFCI and the State Bank of India, with the backing of the Government of Gujarat. It describes itself as a not-for-profit institute. Its postal address is P.O. Bhat, Dist. Gandhinagar, Gujarat 382428. The homepage also lists 13 regional offices and centres across India.