As spoken earlier, we have taken a step forward by investing in Consure Medical, considering the growth opportunity in the sector and the uniqueness of its product. Also, IAN's deal table has other healthcare investment opportunities and they are being looked at avidly.

Please share with our readers some of the key points that IAN looks before investing in the particular company.
There are a few key qualities which we look for in the entrepreneurs and the start-ups before investing in them. Most important being their passion for the business ideas because that's what drives their performance and growth of the business. Domain expertise is the next thing we look for in an individual as it's equally important for entrepreneurs from an angel investor's perspective, to be aware of the operational and regulatory aspects of their respective sectors.

Along with the experience and energy of the team, we also keep in mind the potential of the sector to be invested in. The bet on the execution ability of the team is so high at IAN, that a class A team with a class B idea is far more interesting than a class A idea and class B team!

What have been some of the recent developments at the IAN?
We have recently invested in a social gaming site, HashCube. IAN has also already closed 11 deals this year and nine deals within seven months of 2012. We do expect to close a few more by the year-end.

India has seen a number of start-up companies in the life sciences and healthcare sectors in the past five-to-six years. What are your comments on this upsurge?
Healthcare is a "need-to-have" rather than a "nice-to-have" for everyone. The abysmal state of healthcare in the country (till a few years ago) has provided an opportunity for entrepreneurs to build a very crucial gap in the healthcare space. And to add to that the perspective on the bottom of the pyramid, which is almost 2/3rd of India's population, as a market has suddenly provided an opportunity to build products of global quality at Indian prices. This is absolutely great as apart from a focus on citizen health, a vast market opportunity helps create fast growing ventures creating jobs and wealth which drives economic growth.