This is article originally appeared in www.channeltimes.com.
By ChannelTimes Staff
Mumbai, Nov 22, 2008 0930 hrs IST

Cisco is collaborating with Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and Tiruchirappalli Regional Engineering College - Science and Technology Entrepreneurs Park (TREC-STEP) to promote information and communications technology (ICT) entrepreneurship and innovation in the country.

The programme will provide financing, loan subsidies, mentorship and training to qualified entrepreneurs and small businesses in India.

As part of the pilot programme, SIDBI will finance small ICT businesses in India, which will be run by current and / or former Cisco Networking Academy students. Under the programme, SIDBI will provide loans to entrepreneurs; Cisco will subsidize the interest repayment and guarantee fees on the loans. TREC-STEP will provide customized training and mentoring to participants in the pilot.

The development has come up as a part of the US$ 1 million commitment made by Cisco in 2006 to promote microfinance and ICT entrepreneurship across the world. The new entrepreneurship pilot programme will initially involve ten ICT businesses in Tamil Nadu. The entrepreneurs will be provided loan assistance by SIDBI on flexible terms in order to increase the entrepreneurs' chances of success.