Growth, jobs, and enterprise: Experts select outstanding Grampreneurs® for BYST JRD Tata Awards 2026

Fourteen grassroots entrepreneurs from across India, including five women, have been shortlisted for the BYST JRD Tata Awards 2026. Their businesses have collectively generated nearly 425 direct jobs across sectors such as manufacturing, food processing, agri-business, farm technology, recycling, and industrial solutions.

India’s micro enterprises form the backbone of the MSME sector, with over 9.55 crore enterprises accounting for 99.3% of registered MSMEs and contributing to more than 41 crore jobs. The shortlisted entrepreneurs reflect the growing role of grassroots businesses in generating employment and driving economic growth in small towns and rural areas.

Instituted by Bharatiya Yuva Shakti Trust (BYST) in 1995 as a tribute to its founding chairman, Bharat Ratna JRD Tata, the awards recognise outstanding grassroots entrepreneurs. Many of this year’s shortlisted entrepreneurs started their businesses with limited personal savings or by investing personal assets and faced difficulties accessing formal finance in their early years. Their enterprises now supply to large companies, generate local employment and, in several cases, have expanded into international markets.

Jury assesses entrepreneurs across three categories

The jury evaluated the shortlisted entrepreneurs across three categories: Entrepreneur of the Year 2026, Woman Entrepreneur 2026, and Fastest Growing Entrepreneur of the Year 2026.

The assessment covered business growth, profitability, loan repayment, employment generation, contribution to the local economy, exports and adoption of technology, among other parameters.

The jury was chaired by Prof. S. Mahendra Dev, Chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister, with Sunil Kant Munjal, Chairman of Hero Enterprise, as Co-Chair.

Other jury members included Vikas Swarup, former diplomat and writer; Prof. K.K. Pant, Director, IIT Roorkee; Madan Pillutla, Dean and Professor of Organisational Behaviour, Indian School of Business; Harish Krishnan, Managing Director and Chief Policy Officer, Cisco South and Southeast Asia; Nara Brahmani, Executive Director, Heritage Foods; and Rahul Kanwal, CEO and Editor-in-Chief, NDTV.

BYST has supported over 72,000 entrepreneurs since 1992

“Micro-enterprises can play a much larger role in India’s economic growth by creating jobs and economic opportunities across small towns and rural areas. With the right finance, markets and especially mentoring, many of these enterprises have the potential to grow from self-employment into sustainable businesses that create many more jobs. JRD Tata’s name is synonymous with visionary leadership and some of India’s enduring industrial powerhouses, and the JRD Tata Awards carry forward this legacy by recognising grassroots entrepreneurs who are building sustainable businesses and creating jobs,” said Lakshmi V. Venkatesan, Founding and Managing Trustee, BYST.

The awards also recognise mentors who have supported entrepreneurs in areas such as finance, production, business planning, market access, hiring and expansion. This mentor-entrepreneur relationship, rooted in the traditional Guru-Shishya Parampara, remains central to BYST’s approach to helping first-generation entrepreneurs build sustainable businesses.

Since its inception in 1992, BYST has supported more than 72,000 entrepreneurs. The selection process for the JRD Tata Awards involves nominations from BYST-supported entrepreneurs across the country, followed by due diligence, on-ground verification and a review by a national-level committee before the final assessment by the awards jury.

The winners of the JRD Tata Awards 2026 will be announced at a national awards ceremony to be held shortly.