• The top five winners will be offered incubation at either the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, or Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, which includes up to Rs50 lakh seed funding.

• The winners also get direct pitches to the Indian Angel Network and the Mumbai Angels.

• One winner gets admission to the Microsoft Startup Accelerator Program, which offers coaching, technology and business development support.

• The 30 shortlisted companies get admission to TiE’s Mumbai’s entrepreneurship nurturing program.

• Lots of publicity and community feedback via in-depth profiles, expert reviews and audio/video pitches on NEN’s website and other affiliated sites and publications.

• Interact with a large network of entrepreneurs, investors and potential customers.

Criteria for nomination

A start-up has to satisfy three conditions to qualify as a valid nomination. These are:

• A registered company: This means an operating business, not an idea, or a plan.

• Headquartered in India: Cross-border companies with Indian operations, but headquartered in, say, the US will not qualify.

• Five years, or younger: Companies registered in 2003, or later.

• An independent business: It cannot be a subdivision of a larger company.

List of companies

• Redbus:Online bus booking service

• The Viewspaper: Online newspaper targeted at the youth

• The Loot: Multi-brand discount store chain

• Spring Blossom: Online flower and gift delivery service

• GoSports India: Sports management company

• Tyroo: Online matching of ads with publishers

• Blink Media: Display advertising on shopping carts

• DhanaX: P2P money lending platform

• Sarga Ecotextile: Organic fabric and furnishing

• Telibrahma: Location-based service, ads on Bluetooth

List of experts

Ashish Gupta

MD, Helion Venture Partners

Kumar Shiralagi

MD, NEA-IndoUS Ventures

Alok Mittal

MD, Canaan Partners

Sanjeev Bikhchandani

CEO, Info Edge

Ajit Balakrishnan

Founder and CEO, Rediff