Israel prides itself in being an Innovative Nation, and has long term diplomatic presence in New Delhi and Mumbai. It chose Bengaluru, with its futuristic ethos, as its third destination to reinforce its economic connection with India.
“The bigger economic diplomacy is in creating the right ecosystem involving the best minds and the next generation of inventors, startups, heads of companies and VCs...We are able to bring together amazing innovative solutions which will make the lives of our children and grandchildren much much easier ”, says Dana Kursh, Consul General of Israel to South India.
The Ramthal project is Asia’s largest drip irrigation project; and helps irrigate 60,000 acres in Bagalkot district of Karnataka with Israeli knowhow.
With the bilateral initiatives to help the startup ecosystems underway, “Bengaluru is the place to be. It has all the ingredients and it’s just very easy to be a matchmaker here”, says Consul General of Israel to South India, Dana Kursh, in an interview with Sandhya Mendonca. Both India and Israel are keen on finding next-gen solutions in agriculture, water, healthcare, cyber, and AI, among others. The big picture lies in the Triple I – India, Israel, Innovation that form a unique partnership between cutting-edge startup nations that are leading innovation solutions. The historic visits of the Prime Ministers of both countries in 2017, and 2018, led to creation of the $40 million I4F (India-Israel R&D and Technological Innovation Fund), and the India-Israel Innovation Bridge.
The consulate here focuses on enhancing bilateral trade opportunities by “connecting innovators who are creating a better future for the world”. “The state of Karnataka, and its capital Bengaluru, are both important in implementing the strategic partnership,” says Kursh. Bengaluru and Tel Aviv share the same triangular connections between business, academia and the government that drive innovation. “If we are able to connect these ecosystems, it is a win-win for both”, says Kursh.
The state of Karnataka, and its capital Bengaluru, are both important in implementing the strategic partnership.
- Dana Kursh, Consul General of Israel to South India
Israeli startup Soapy’s worked with non-profit, Swasti Health Catalyst, to instal smart handwashing units in schools in Bengaluru district.
While culture and travel have their place, it’s primarily the B2B connections that set the pace. For example, Flipkart, the Bengaluru headquartered internet unicorn has recently invested in Israeli startup Upstream Commerce. As a ‘diplomatic matchmaker’, Kursh hopes to get more connections like these. Some of the measures that are helping find partners to help build an innovative ecosystem include:
- Signing of an MoU between the Karnataka state ITBT Ministry and Israel, called KIRD (Karnataka Israel R&D Programme) – to help Israeli and Karnataka startups partner with each other
- An MOU with Intel India to extend its Maker Lab facilities to Israeli startups which are expected to harness AI, 5G connectivity, and assisted-driving, to solve the issues in healthcare, agriculture, and road safety
- An MoU with Nasscom and Accenture, to accelerate innovation by connecting Israeli and Indian startups
- The Israel Centre at the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB) is training Israeli and Indian startups, and facilitates student exchanges and offers a crash course on how to do business together.
Israel also offers incentives to startup partners in both countries. Examples of the results of these incentives include:
- An answer to a challenge to solve a real-world problem of water usage by an Israeli company called Soapy. It developed a hygiene micro-station powered by smart capsules that dispense accurate doses of soap and water. It worked with a non-profit, Swasti Health Catalyst, to install the handwashing units in schools in Bengaluru district.
- Bengaluru based Medical simulation startup Mimyk was one of the five start-ups that won the Start JLM Jerusalem competition and participated in an innovation ‘boost camp’ for early-stage startups.
AgriTech
With food security being a focus area, Israel also shares best practices with local farmers in AgriTech in nearly 30 centres of excellence across India, three of them here in Karnataka. This technology has already begun to improve the yield of mangoes in Kolar, pomegranates in Bagalkot and vegetables in Dharwad. The Karnataka government’s agriculture and horticulture departments are implementing the Israeli drip irrigation model on 40,000 hectares in different parts of the state, and the Honorable Chief Minister, H D Kumaraswamy, in his budget speech in July 2018, has allocated Rs. 300 cr for adopting Israeli technology in agriculture in Karnataka.
Kursh paints an engaging picture of Israeli and Indian companies working together “in open spaces, in small apartments, in campuses …partnering to find the best solutions in agriculture, water, cybersecurity, AI…working together on the next big innovation, to create a wonderful future for both our nations.”
