Bangalore: A hub for social entrepreneurship?

Bangalore, Jan 20: The changing pace and face of this high-tech city, once described as a pensioner's paradise and now a bubbling youth destination, is yielding to yet another destination.

Will it emerge a major hub for social entrepreneurship? The city had the potential, according to a social organisation Ashoka: Innovators for the Public, which supported over 2,000 social entrepreneurs across the globe.

Some reasons why the trend or the idea might not be far fetching, according to a spokesman for Ashoka, included the city being the home for two of the pioneering foundations in India - Infosys and Azim Premji Foundations and many leading foundations were increasingly active in Bangalore or holding their major events in India in Bangalore.

Besides, Bangalore also housed two social organisations -- Centre for Contemporary Thinking and the Centre for Public Affairs -- and Janaagraha which dealt extensively on civic citizenship area. In addition to these institutions, the Indian Institute of Management- Bangalore was one of the few institutions in the country to house a focused centre for public policy, corporate governance and entrepreneurship.

The confluence of technology and business leaders aided by overall momentum made Bangalore the ideal choice for driving the thinking and action on social entrepreneurship arena, the spokesman said.

Mr Bill Drayton, Founder of Ashoka and the man who coined the term social entrepreneurship, pointed out that Bangalore was ahead of the curve and was a great reflection of where India was headed if it continued its current momentum.

In the words of Infosys Chief Mentor N R Narayana Murthy, Bangalore's unique cosmopolitan character and its emergence as a global face of outsourcing had combined to provide a momentum that was incomparable. ''This magnetism attracts all kinds of entrepreneurs, including social entrepreneurs. I see no reason why Bangalore cannot emerge as the hub for thinking and new trends on social entrepreneurship in the coming days and years. Look forward to seeing it happen as bridging the divide has been something close to my heart as well,'' he added.

UNI