Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS)
A programme by Incubation Centre IIT Patna
DPIIT's national seed-fund scheme, disbursed through IC IITP as an empanelled incubator.
At a glance
| Best for | DPIIT-recognised startups under 2 years old, majority Indian-owned |
|---|---|
| Stage | Idea – MVP |
| Duration | 12 months (prototyping support period) |
| Format | In person |
| Cost | Free |
| Grant support | For selected startups. A place in the programme does not by itself guarantee a grant. |
| Run with | DPIIT |
About Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS)
The Startup India Seed Fund Scheme is a DPIIT programme, and IC IITP is one of the incubators disbursing it to eligible startups.
What you get
- A milestone-based grant for validating proof of concept, prototype development or product trials
- Investment for market entry, commercialisation or scaling, through convertible debentures or debt-linked instruments
Who can apply
- A startup recognised by DPIIT and incorporated no more than 2 years before applying
- A technology-based product or service with market fit and a viable path to commercialisation
- Has not received more than a small amount of monetary support under any other government scheme
- At least 51% Indian promoter shareholding
- Preference goes to MedTech, IoT and robotics, defence and space, biotechnology, energy and mobility, automobile, and automation startups
How to apply: apply through DPIIT's Startup India Seed Fund portal and select IC IITP as your incubator.
Where to apply
Other Incubation Centre IIT Patna programmes
- Resident / Non-Resident Incubation ProgrammeIC IITP's core incubation track for ESDM, medical-electronics and ICT hardware startups, with lab access, mentoring and a seed fund.
- Pre-Incubation ProgrammeA short, no-cost stage for teams not yet ready to pitch for full incubation.
- BioNEST-ICIITPA BIRAC and DBT-backed incubation track for life-sciences, MedTech and biotech founders, with its own dedicated space and labs.
- NIDHI PrayasDST's prototype-development scheme, hosted at IC IITP; its most recent application window has closed.
- NIDHI-EIRA DST entrepreneur-in-residence stipend, hosted at IC IITP, for a founder to work full-time on a technology business idea for a year.
- GENESIS at IC IITPMeitY's Tier-II/III city startup scheme, run at IC IITP across three separate tracks — entrepreneur-in-residence, pilot funding, and matching investment.
- MedTech SchoolA paid, week-long short course on medical-device innovation for students, founders, faculty and industry.
- Entrepreneurship Development Programme cum Internship (EDPI)A recurring, multi-week weekly programme combining entrepreneurship training with an internship, run with EdTech partner Moonpreneur.
- IdeathonA recurring idea-pitching competition for life-sciences ideas, feeding into BioNEST incubation. Its most recent edition, Ideathon 2.0, closed in March 2025.