Panel discussion on Entrepreneurship and Public Policy

Takshashila's head of policy research Pavan Srinath participated in a panel discussion on Entrepreneurship and Public Policy on Thursday, April 23 evening. The discussion was conducted by The Crowdworks in association with the coworking space BHive in Koramangala, Bangalore.Pavan Srinath spoke about how and why entrepreneurs need to stay aware about public affairs and policy, and engage in it when they can. He argued that rather than asking for tax breaks, startups would benefit from greater ease in doing business, as well as better civic amenities. He also spoke about how while startups cannot afford to devote human resources to government engagement, associations can promote the interests of up and coming startups. Innovative startups that disrupt existing markets have a greater need to engage the public as laws may favour incumbents, and the more radical a new idea, the greater the need to engage in public affairs.Srinath's co-panelists included Naresh Narasimhan, Rajat Mukherjee of Janaagraha, Promita Saxena of Citizengage and Kailas S Bhat of TechnoZest. The panel discussion was moderated by Moses Sam Paul.