The event, held at Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya in Moti Bagh, served as a high-energy showcase for the next generation of Indian entrepreneurs. Delhi Education Minister Ashish Sood, attending as the chief guest, reviewed projects from 46 top-performing students selected from across various zones.

Key Highlights of the NEEEV Initiative:

• Scale of Innovation: Nearly 1.5 lakh students from approximately 1,000 Delhi government schools (Classes 8–12) participated. Out of 30,000 ideas generated, 4,829 teams were selected for prototype funding.

• Seed Funding: To bridge the gap between idea and reality, the Delhi government provided each selected team with ₹20,000 in seed money, totaling a ₹10 crore investment in student-led startups.

• Tech-Social Synergy: Projects on display included AI prototypes for community safety, low-cost water purification systems, and digital tools designed to solve local environmental challenges.

• Industry Immersion: The program goes beyond the classroom, with over 52,000 students attending skill-based workshops and visiting industrial giants like Maruti Suzuki, Hero MotoCorp, and Toshiba to understand large-scale manufacturing and operations.

Strategic Vision:

Launched in September 2025 in alignment with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, NEEEV aims to "institutionalize" the spirit of inquiry. Minister Sood noted that while India has over 2 lakh startups, the NEEEV program ensures that students from humble backgrounds are not just consumers of technology but its creators.

What's Next?

The competition now moves toward the state level, where the top 150 student teams (known as "Startup Stormers") will be selected later this year. These finalists will receive advanced mentorship from industry leaders and potential incubation opportunities to turn their school projects into viable social enterprises.