Haqdarshak: ET Startup Awards 2024 | Social Enterprise: Haqdarshak takes government plans to the last mile

This year’s ET Startup Awards jury deliberations for the Social enterprise Category focused on two critical issues affecting society at large: waste management, which Saahas Zero Waste is trying to solve, and Haqdarshakthat helps citizens to access government schemes and benefits.

The elite jury voted Haqdarshak the winner after two rounds of debates, which evaluated both the nominees and the impact they are having on society through their businesses. The Social Enterprise category recognises the startup that best represents the “double bottom line” model that combines profit and public good.

While waste and its disposal method were of interest to the jury, they ultimately chose Haqdarshak for the startup’s efforts to engage more people within the government. welfare schemes through a profitable business model.

ET Startup Awards 2024: Lenskart scores 10/10 and takes top honours

One of the jury members noted that the government is investing huge sums in social security and that anyone who helps more citizens access these plans will have a significant impact.

“This recognition is a humbling experience for us and will go a long way in staying true to our cause. We have touched the lives of seven million Indians so far, which is a drop in the ocean. This recognition will push us to work harder to expand the beneficiary base,” said Aniket Doegar, CEO of Haqdarshak.

For the startup, which works primarily with 150 corporations, family offices and non-governmental organizations to reach millions of blue-collar workers, farmers and micro-enterprises, the next round of growth will come from financial services.

Haqdarshak is already piloting a RuPay card for these beneficiaries to help them access financial services in a more organized manner.

ET Startup Awards 2024: Betting on innovation

“We have just completed the first phase of the business, the next is when we will expand our scope of operations to really reach the poorest 70% of the country’s population and the payment service will allow us to do so efficiently,” added Doegar.

Currently, Haqdarshak offers a “Yojana Card” that helps identify potential beneficiaries of these programmes and provides training on how to access them. Doegar said the company has helped people access benefits worth Rs 25 billion so far.

Founded in 2016, Bengaluru-based Haqdarshak has so far raised Rs 200 crore in funding from investors including Acumen Fund and Financial Health Innovation Fund. Over the past two years, the startup reported a net profit of Rs 470,000 on revenue of Rs 355,000 in the financial year ended March 2024.

---

Other contenders

Blackfrog Technologies

Donson Dsouza, co-founder of Blackfrog Technologies

Blackfrog Technologies builds portable, battery-powered backpacks that can transport vaccines at a constant temperature over long distances even without an external power source.

Saahas Zero Waste

Shobha Raghavan

Saahas helps in recycling solid waste generated in large corporate parks and housing societies. It offers services through which waste can be collected through formal channels and recycled to make new products.

CAR

Aayush Goyal and Sahil Bansal, co-founders of Kosh

Kosh offers affordable financial services to blue-collar workers, who are part of the informal economy or work in factories and production units.

range of

Smita Ram, co-founder of Rang De

Rang De runs a peer-to-peer lending platform to connect retail investors with borrowers. Rang De aims to encourage investors to contribute funds to provide capital to rural Indians.