Connecting Youth with Visionaries: The Quest Kicks Off in Gangtok

GANGTOK,: ‘The Quest,’ a five-year initiative aimed at inspiring Sikkimese youth, kicked off on a powerful note Monday afternoon at Manan Kendra, Gangtok. The event featured three distinguished speakers who shared their experiences and insights with college and university students.

Dr. Tej Chingatham, a leading authority on startups, businessman Guru T. Ladakhi, and renowned caterer Nima Lama of Seema Catering engaged the audience during the “Business & Entrepreneurship” session with their insights – both personal and professional. They highlighted the abundant opportunities in today’s technology-driven world, emphasizing that success hinges on qualities like honesty, hard work, resilience, and adaptability.

Launched by Lok Sabha MP Indra Hang Subba, “The Quest” is a series of monthly talks designed to connect students with leaders from various sectors. The initiative is organized in collaboration with Positude and in association with Press Club of Sikkim.

In his opening remarks, Indra Hang articulated that ‘The Quest’ aligns with Chief Minister PS Golay’s vision for a “Sunaulo Sikkim, Samriddha Sikkim, Samartha Sikkim.” He stated, “Collective action is essential for achieving a ‘Vikshit Sikkim’ in the future. This initiative provides a platform for sharing valuable knowledge and experiences with our youth, helping them find direction in their pursuits. We will bring thinkers and leaders of all sectors and have them interacting directly with our students and youth so that they are encouraged.”

Dr. Tej Chingatham, an educationist and a prominent authority in startups & entrepreneurship, sensitized the students about the incubation hubs which offer support and solutions for new startups and entrepreneurship ventures, and the policies that help the new generation of entrepreneurs to thrive. At present there is a strong ecosystem in the country for entrepreneurship, he said, motivating the students to come forward and take benefit of guidance offered at an institutional-level.

Neema Lama, affectionately known as Seema Didi, shared the fundamentals for success in any field, particularly in business. Honesty, punctuality and hard work are essential for good results and these are the life values that helped me find success in catering business, she said. Even after being successful, one should never stop learning as business is a never ending process, she said.

Businessman-poet Guru T. Ladakhi shared with the audience about both his successes and failures in various business ventures while emphasizing on the mantra “think big, start small”. He added that compared to the past, there is a wonderful ecosystem for new businesses and ventures to thrive across the world. There is a brave new world out there, he said, urging the students to leverage the available entrepreneurship platforms.

Press Club of Sikkim president Bhim Rawat recorded that ‘The Quest’ programme would definitely bear fruits in coming years by sharing knowledge and expertise on various fields to the present young generation. This is a well-thought initiative to bring the students and have them learn from experts of various fields, the knowledge they learnt today will give good results in future, he said.