CHANAKYA PG Fellowship 2026

Applications are open till 15 November 2026 (Subject to further extension). Applications will be reviewed regularly, even before the end date. We encourage you to apply as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

The project timeline is normally expected to be 12 months. (The duration and extension of the timeline of the project are as per the NMICPS timeline and review of work progress under the Technology Development Program of the IITI DRISHTI CPS Foundation).

Students and Faculty should be from the same host institute.

Only One student can apply for the CHANAKYA PG Fellowship.

The student will be supported with a fellowship of INR 12,400/- per month through the duration of the project.

The institute that endorses the project proposals of their student teams along with the respective faculty mentor is called the host institute. The authorized personnel from the host institute would be the one-point contact between the host institution and IITI DRISHTI CPS Foundation.

Yes, but submissions must be accompanied with an endorsement letter from the host institute in which the student is enrolled.

No. The mentor faculty member will receive a certificate from IITI DRISHTI Foundation on successful completion of the project. It is important to note that this scheme is primarily meant for undergraduate students.

Yes

There are several incentives for the host institute, these are listed below: I. As a mandate to enhance the research base in the field of Cyber Physical Systems, the progress and performance of this project shall also be the yardstick for additional benefits and eligibility of development of Host Institute as a Spoke of IITI DRISHTI CPS Foundation. As a Spoke certain extended activities including research, skilling etc shall also be conducted and supported at the Spoke Institute. II. The host institute will be provided support for filing patents, commercialization, and to support startups of their students’/faculty members related to field of Cyber Physical Systems (CPS) III. As a spoke, the host institute will be supported in establishing connection with industries IV. The host institute will be given a certificate for successfully completed projects V. Maximum 10% overhead for the host institute out of 1 lakh development grant.

Apart from fellowship, a developmental grant of up to INR 2,00,000 on actuals with proper justification on a reimbursement basis may be considered. The host institute would be expected to facilitate funds initially for the project development grant. IITI DRISHTI CPS Foundation may also facilitate connecting students with appropriate personnel/organizations who could provide aid and assistance in the execution of the project.

Yes, after the successful completion of the project students and faculty mentors will get certificates.

IITI DRISHTI CPS Foundation encourages and supports innovative ideas with the potential to be patented. In such cases, the DRISHTI shall file the intellectual property as Applicant, with all innovators duly acknowledged as inventors, and the IP shall be owned by the DRISHTI. Where the host institute wishes to support the filing, joint filing may be considered at the sole discretion of the DRISHTI and on mutually agreed terms, with the DRISHTI retaining the lead role in prosecution and management of the application. Where industry partners are involved in a project and have agreed in advance to support it, joint filing with such partners may likewise be considered. Any such arrangement shall be subject to a written agreement that clearly records each party’s contribution, ownership share, and commercialization rights, and that preserves the DRISHTI’s rights in the IP. Where participating students wish to take their idea forward as a startup, the DRISHTI will encourage and support them through its startup support programs. Any licence or transfer of the underlying IP shall be granted by the Foundation on terms agreed in writing.

IITI DRISHTI CPS Foundation’s CHANAKYA PG Fellowships are competitive in nature. We look for innovative ideas having potential for application in the field. Possibility of filing a patent, end user application, Clarity and technical depth, feasibility, relevance to CPS and cost of solution are some of the criteria for the evaluation. Ideas which reach a conclusion level by the end of the tenure of the fellowship will be given a higher preference. All the ideas will be evaluated by various experts. Decision of the IITI DRISHTI CPS Foundation will be final and no further query will be entertained about the decision.

To be able to meet timelines and translate an idea into a product or technology, IITI DRISHTI CPS Foundation will ensure strict and continuous interaction of all selected awardee(s)/student teams of the projects with academic and industry persons. The interaction would be aimed at guiding the student teams at appropriate levels and ensuring the success of each proposal. The interaction would be done over in-person presentations or through online meetings. IITI DRISHTI CPS Foundation would select a panel of experts to interact with each student team of the projects. It is also the responsibility of the host institute and the mentor faculty to strictly monitor the progress through the development cycle of the project.

It will be through your host university/institute as per policy.

In case such a situation arises, the balance funds should be returned to IITI DRISHTI CPS Foundation.

Ideally a presentation should accompany your application, highlighting the problem and its criticality, the proposed solution, and expected benefits mainly in the area of CPS. Also, clearly mention the end users of the proposed technology. The proposal should be aligned with the provided format.

Although student may identify their own problems and propose solutions for the same, there are certain advantages to taking up problems statements of participating end users. These include and are not limited to: - As problem statements are provided by participating end users, the solutions have a higher chance of being put to practical use. - Higher financial support may be available in certain cases. - Experts from such participating end users may provide their inputs and add value to ideas.

Yes, most welcome. We intend to widen our network of participating end users.

Yes, it is mandatory. One should use following text in acknowledgement: “All authors acknowledge the support received from IITI DRISHTI CPS Foundation under the aegis of National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber Physical System (NMICPS), Department of Science and Technology, Government of India.”