Environment lovers won the first season of Launchpad Bangladesh

The Dhaka Times Desk Finally, Environment Move.com had the last laugh. Because they won the hearts of the judges and won the seed capital of Tk 2.5 lakh for Launchpad Bangladesh Season One. But what was not understood at the beginning of the day would happen. The remaining 4 start-up teams participating in the finale presented their unique and simple business strategies making the task for the judges many times more difficult.

Final pitching starts at 4.30pm. The pitching session started with Illusion, a startup capable of providing unique facilities to modern fashion-conscious girls in designing dresses of their choice. After that, Team-Four-Tech, a team of four engineers presented the latest gadget of low-cost mosquito killing in indigenous technology.

Sixteen-year-old Kaushik, Ifti and Salman came up with the project "Save Your Rice" to prove that age is no barrier to becoming an entrepreneur or that something can be done for the country even before puberty. “Save Your Paddy” is a security device that will work to protect farmers' hard-earned crops from thieves and rats. They have already installed this device experimentally in the fields of 2 farmers in Savar.

Then comes EnvironmentMove.com, founded by 3 young people who have just graduated from Soil Water Science with the dream of saving the environment in Bangladesh. This start-up, built on a very simple but innovative business model, has been operating for the past 13 months. Various problems related to the environment will be presented to the common people in a very simple language and will make them aware. Listening to them, it was understood that they have taken this movement as their career to protect the environment. Finally presented by Sylhet's startup 'Passion Tech'.

The fact that it is possible to build a business with complex and sophisticated technology outside of Dhaka is evidenced by the invention of the ODVIP device by a team of newly graduated engineers from Shabiprobi, which may be the most modern alternative to any device that helps the blind to move. They needed a sponsorship of only 50 thousand rupees to complete the final stage of research for this device.

The meticulous judging of this start-up grand event was conducted by EMK Center CEO MK Aref, Other Group Chairman Mahmudul Hasan Sohag, Enovesna Founder and CEO Nazmul Ahmed Najam, Chaldal.com Co-Founder and CEO Wasim Alim and Hub-Dhaka Founder Sajid Islam.

Also present were Mentor AR Communication CEO M Asif Rahman and Advocate Saleh Akram who worked tirelessly with the start-ups for the past 6 weeks.

After the pitching, the main attraction of the evening was the speech of Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor AMS Arefin Siddiqui and MD Sabur Khan, Chairman of Defdil Group. Mr. Sabur Khan highlighted some of his successful entrepreneurial life and encouraged the young entrepreneurs present as well as assured them of any kind of business support in the coming days. And the Honorable Vice-Chancellor highlighted the role of young entrepreneurs in economic and social development of Bangladesh.

The judging was conducted by MK Aref, CEO of EMK Centre, Mahmudul Hasan Sohag, Chairman of Other Group, Nazmul Ahmed Nazm, Founder and CEO of Enovesna, Wasim Alim, Co-Founder and CEO of Chaldal.com and Sajid Islam, Founder of Hub-Dhaka. Also present were the CEO of Mentor AR Communication who has been working tirelessly with start-ups for the past 6 weeks and the Editor-in-Chief of The Dhaka Times. M Asif Rahman And Advocate Saleh Akram.

Organized by The Preneurs and funded by EMK Centre, Launchpad Bangladesh kicked off on January 3 this year with the aim of finding innovative and promising startups from four regions of Bangladesh, ending on August 29 with the pitching of five young entrepreneurial teams.