Helping small entrepreneurs make a big impact Premium

India Post has proved to be a game-changer for hundreds of small entrepreneurs and traditional artisans in Telangana.

In 1993, fresh out of Vinukonda Degree College in Guntur district of present-day Andhra Pradesh, armed with a commerce degree, Konga Srinivas Rao arrived in Hyderabad determined to build something of his own. But dreams, he soon realised, don’t take shape overnight. His first break came at his uncle’s television assembling unit in Koti area. He had dived into a field he knew nothing about, and yet, instead of shying away, he rolled up his sleeves and learnt the art of manufacturing black-and-white TV sets, from the ground up.

In three years, he had mastered every aspect of the process — assembly, circuit tubes and complete TV production. “Every day, we used to manufacture close to 200 TV sets which were very much in demand then,” recalls Rao, now 52.

But just when things seemed steady, a roadblock emerged: the unreliable supply of 18-volt step-down transformers, a key component sourced from Delhi. Production delays mounted, losses piled up and frustration grew. His uncle, seeing both the problem and Rao’s growing expertise, made a suggestion that would change his life: “Why don’t you manufacture the transformers yourself?”

The idea was daunting — he had just gotten married, the resources were limited and competition was fierce. But he decided to take the plunge anyway. In 1998, he, along with his graduate-wife Rama Devi, launched his own unit — R.S. Enterprises — from a small rented room in Hyderabad that the couple shared.

What began as a modest setup is now producing 70,000 transformers annually. “I diligently catered to the needs of manufacturers and ensured highest quality. This helped me make my work known to the companies,” Rao says proudly.

Given his thriving business, he managed to buy a house in Boduppal area of the city in 2011. “It is a two-storey building. The ground floor is my manufacturing unit and the upper floor is my residence,” he adds.

In 2018, with a loan under the Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP) — a Central scheme aimed at boosting entrepreneurship and job creation by providing financial assistance for micro-businesses — and unexpected support from the postal department, Rao scaled his business beyond what he had imagined.