The Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Jammu has taken its entrepreneurship mentorship programme to five government degree colleges in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district, offering students guidance on developing business ideas into viable start-up ventures.
The institute organised ‘Offscript with IIM Jammu: YUVA Tales’ at Government Degree College (GDC), Rajouri, bringing together student innovators from GDC Rajouri, GDC Nowshera, GDC Sunderbani, GDC Budhal and GDC Thannamandi.
Participating colleges had shortlisted students based on their proposed ideas. The selected students presented their concepts to the IIM Jammu incubation team, which guided them on ideation, idea validation, market research, business model development and identifying opportunities within the start-up ecosystem.
The sessions also covered the practical applicability and commercial viability of the proposed ideas, with discussions on developing sustainable business models that can be scaled into ventures.
The programme is part of a four-session series designed to mentor aspiring entrepreneurs and involve family business stakeholders in discussions on innovation and entrepreneurship. The series will conclude with Innovation Day, the annual flagship event of IIM Jammu's Centre for Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Skill Development (CEISD).
Through the initiative, the institute intends to extend its incubation and mentorship support beyond its campuses, encouraging students to identify local challenges and develop solutions that can be taken to market.
IIM Jammu already operates business incubation facilities in Jammu and Srinagar through its Foundation for Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Skill Development (FEISD). The centres provide start-ups with workspace, access to mentors, technical infrastructure and assistance with business development.
The Jammu incubation centre, operational since 2022, has facilities including a 40-seat co-working space, 3D printing equipment and high-performance computing infrastructure. Its support areas include business registration, legal and intellectual property assistance, investor readiness and networking with industry partners.
The institute has also conducted entrepreneurship outreach programmes with other higher education institutions in the region. In September 2026, it organised an earlier YUVA Tales programme in collaboration with Cluster University of Jammu, involving students from its constituent colleges. That programme focused on identifying problems, discussing ideas and assessing their potential as business ventures.
The Rajouri initiative extends this outreach to students in the district's government colleges, giving them access to the institute's entrepreneurship and incubation network.