Today, India has become fertile ground for breeding new entrepreneurs. Her markets are liquid, vibrant and as the recent economic recession has shown, much more stable as compared to markets of other countries. It is well established that education is a prime factor which contributes to the development of entrepreneurship. Access to technology, increase in foreign direct investments and other de-regulation policies are throwing up new opportunities every day.

An important aspect of entrepreneurship in India is social entrepreneurship. In India , where high levels of poverty and unemployment still exist, many people have decide to take matters into their own hands, with or without the help of government , to work for a better tomorrow. Concepts like Teach for India, Tata Jagriti Yatra etc. not only help in promotion of entrepreneurship among the youth, but also provide them with hands-on experience. There is a greater recognition that social enterprises could have a role in solving social issues. What we need to do is to create an environment where entrepreneurs feel confident that they will not face any obstacles if they develop business models for the benefit of the poor.

Social entrepreneurs identify a problem or opportunity, create change where necessary, and spread solutions—sometimes persuading entire societies to take new leaps.

Social entrepreneurs in India are proving every day that you don’t need big pockets or big business to create impressive changes. You just need big vision.

In fact, the innovations of our social entrepreneurs are changing the stereotypical perceptions of life in rural India. Where rural India was once viewed as a place of poverty and degradation, today it is increasingly seen as a land of opportunity, thanks to the visions of many individuals. For instance, programs established to train women as solar entrepreneurs, illuminate rural communities, and empower rickshaw pullers are all driving big change in some of our most rural communities.

In the last decade alone, charity income in the UK more than doubled to nearly £50bn a year, giving rise to a small number of increasingly large operators. The 0.5% of charities with incomes above £10m now absorbs more than 50% of all charity income.

Public trust in charities is high - only the armed forces, the NHS and schools are trusted more. But that trust is volatile: according to one survey, people's trust in charities has swung wildly from 51% down to 42%, and back up to 65% in just three years. Public alienation is a real risk.

Secondly, as charities grow, the distance between the beneficiary and the management grows with it. Some charities manage to embed client-centred responsiveness within their structures; cf. RAPt and Mencap, where stakeholders are intrinsically involved. But for many charities, beneficiaries are passive recipients of services and their needs come a long way behind those of other stakeholders.

Not only will innovation and entrepreneurship transform rural India, it will transform our society as a whole. Even the smallest innovation, the most minor adjustment, can lead to ground-breaking change.