Army Day celebrated at kempegowda international airport

The three-day First Circle-Udyami Vokkaliga expo concluded on a successful note on Sunday. Speaking at the event, Paramapoojya Jagadguru Sri Sri Sri Dr Nanjavadhoota Swamiji of Spatikapuri Mahasamsthana expressed, "When we develop an officer, they can become an institution in themselves and help lakhs of people. We've seen this in the case of Dr. HN Krishna, who trained 12,000 to 13,000 officers in a very fair manner. I commend Jayaram Raipura's vision. The FC expo has grown exponentially year after year. With diverse stalls across many sectors, First Circle has provided opportunities to the Vokkaliga community. First Circle members have fostered mutual business growth, offering everything from pins to machines, cold-pressed oil to dairy technology, and construction to matrimony services. Today, this expo stands as the best platform for supporting one another. First Circle has truly created a successful platform."

Speaking on the occasion, Chamundeshwari MLA G.T. Deve Gowda highlighted the deep agricultural roots of the Vokkaliga community, stating, "In the current challenging financial situation for agriculturists, many of our entrepreneurs are not just job creators but are also supporting countless families directly and indirectly. FC-Udyami Vokkaliga is a remarkable platform that unites Vokkaliga entrepreneurs and focuses on capacity building. The success of this third-year expo is a testament to the leadership of Jayaram Raipura. I encourage entrepreneurs to return to their villages and create more employment opportunities in rural areas. This platform also aims to uplift financially disadvantaged individuals by empowering them as entrepreneurs."

Senior IRS officer Jayaram Raipura expressed his enthusiasm about the event's success. He stated, "The three-day Udyami Vokkaliga Expo has been a phenomenal success, attracting over 35,000 participants from across Karnataka. This is a significant increase compared to the 8,000 visitors last year. During the first expo, 50 entrepreneurs showcased their products. The number grew to 90 in the second edition, and this year, we had over 120 entrepreneurs participating." He emphasised the event's primary goal: "Our main objective is to create entrepreneurial awareness within the Vokkaliga community. We have built confidence among entrepreneurs, and next year, we aim to elevate aggregator businesses to the next level. We plan to create a comprehensive database of Vokkaliga entrepreneurs and focus on capacity building for the existing ones."

Highlighting the potential of the Vokkaliga community, he said, "With over one crore Vokkaligas in South India, our vision is to foster brotherhood in business. Our mission is to encourage at least 10 lakh individuals from this community to become entrepreneurs. Among them, our goal is to see one lakh entrepreneurs achieve an annual turnover of ₹10 crore each, and 10,000 of them reach an annual turnover of ₹100 crore each. To achieve this, we will revisit our strategies, prioritise capacity building, and come up with innovative, out-of-the-box solutions."

During the event, the FC Angels logo was unveiled. Speaking about its significance, Prashanth Prakash (partner at Accel) emphasised the next steps for FC, stating, "While support and mentorship for entrepreneurs exist, the key focus now should be on accelerating path-breaking initiatives with the right capital. The idea of a small fund can make FC the first community to provide targeted support to disruptive entrepreneurs in our state, especially those from rural areas. With backing from high-net-worth individuals and businesses, we aim to create a cohort of high-potential, disruptive startups funded through this platform." He announced a ₹ 1 crore seed fund under FC angels

FC State Unit President Nandeesh Rajegowda shared, "Out of the 124 taluks, we have successfully organised efforts in 62 taluks, and we have compiled all the relevant details in a book, which has been released today. This book brings together all the entrepreneurs from these taluks along with their information. We are currently working on compiling the remaining 70 taluks, and this will be completed soon."

During the event, Ee Sanje Venkatesh, MG Balakrishna (FC All sector chairman), SG Medappa, former MLC and Dr Divya Rangenahalli, Founder and CEO of Media Connect and other dignitaries were present.