Bharatia

Check which entity runs the programme

Before you commit time to an application, be clear on who you are dealing with. The organisation's main pages present Samarth Bharat Foundation as the legal entity behind Bharatia, while the ETV programme pages name Samarth Ganga Foundation as the foundation the programme runs under. Confirm this when you first make contact.

Make sure your solution fits the ETV model

The ETV programme is for solutions that are already proven somewhere in the world, not for early-stage ideas or R&D. If your technology has not yet been demonstrated at scale in India or another emerging market, and you are open to establishing a presence in India, you are closer to the profile it looks for.

Pick the right category

There are three ways in, and they are not interchangeable:

• Core — your solution is proven globally, not yet implemented at scale in India or other emerging markets, high-impact, and you are open to manufacturing or assembling and to a presence in India.
• Development — your solution is as mature as a Core candidate's, but your commercialisation team or strategy is not yet in place.
• Market Access — you do not qualify for Core or Development, or you are already present in India and want ETV validation for market visibility.

How applications work

Entry is by invitation. If you have not been invited, the route in is to submit an Expression of Interest for the category that fits, which an evaluation panel then considers. Attending an ETV introduction workshop is another way to start a conversation.

Bharatia is the execution platform of the Samarth Bharat Foundation, a non-profit entity established under Section 8 of the Companies Act of India and set up as a company limited by guarantee. It is headquartered in New Delhi, and its stated purpose is to tackle large development challenges by taking proven technologies and scaling them for wider impact. Its best-documented activity is the Environment & Technology Verification (ETV) programme.

A note on names worth checking before you apply: the foundation's own homepage and about page describe Samarth Bharat Foundation as the legal representation of Bharatia, while the ETV programme pages state that the ETV programme is managed by Bharatia under the aegis of Samarth Ganga Foundation. The pages name two different foundations, so confirm which entity you are dealing with when you make contact.

What they support

Bharatia works with technology and solution companies whose product is already proven elsewhere in the world but has not yet been implemented at scale in India or other emerging markets. The ETV programme is described as a technology commercialisation and acceleration programme rather than an R&D programme, so it is aimed at companies that already have a working, proven solution and need a route into the Indian market. Companies are expected to be open to establishing a presence in India, including manufacturing or assembling locally.

Beyond the ETV programme, Bharatia describes an organisational mandate of launching First-of-a-Kind (FOAK) commercial-scale demonstration projects and then scaling them, and it announces lists of grand challenges, including a 2025-26 list of climate grand challenges, inviting solutions for mass deployment. These are described as organisational workstreams rather than open-intake programmes with published eligibility, so a founder's clearest route in is the ETV programme.

Programmes

The ETV programme introduces proven solutions to market and is entered by invitation, with candidates able to submit an Expression of Interest for consideration by an evaluation panel. It has three application categories: Core, for solutions already proven globally but not yet implemented at scale in India or other emerging markets, that are high-impact and whose companies are open to manufacturing or assembling and to establishing a presence in India; Development, for companies at the same solution maturity as Core but without a commercialisation team or strategy yet in place; and Market Access, for companies that do not qualify for Core or Development, or that are already present in India but want ETV validation for market visibility. The programme uses a proprietary methodology it calls VIPERS, with technology, commercial and investment readiness scoring, to structure how each solution is taken to market.

Track record

Bharatia reports that, as of March 2024, over 60 technologies from 18 countries had gone through the ETV programme. This is the organisation's own figure.

How to apply

Entry to the ETV programme is by invitation only. Interested companies can submit an Expression of Interest for the relevant category — Core, Development or Market Access — for the evaluation panel to consider, or take part in an ETV introduction workshop. The foundation's contact page offers topic-specific routes to get in touch, including ones to submit a grand challenge or a FOAK or impact project, rather than a single published application form.