ICAR SHITIJ 2.0
A programme by Pusa Krishi, ICAR-IARI
An ICAR-wide incubation programme delivered hub-and-spoke across the ICAR Agribusiness Incubation Centre network, with a two-month online phase.
At a glance
| Best for | Indian innovators with an agriculture-relevant idea, product or solution |
|---|---|
| Stage | Idea – MVP |
| Duration | Two-month online programme, with optional physical incubation afterwards |
| Format | Hybrid |
| Run with | ICAR Agribusiness Incubation Centre (ABIC) Network, National Agriculture Innovation Fund (NAIF) |
About ICAR SHITIJ 2.0
ICAR SHITIJ 2.0 is run under the National Agriculture Innovation Fund through the ICAR Agribusiness Incubation Centre network, connecting fifty ICAR centres on a hub-and-spoke model. Those fifty centres are the ICAR network, not Pusa Krishi's own sites. Applications are submitted through the designated hub and spoke centres rather than only to Pusa Krishi. The 2026 edition opened on 3 July and closed on 31 July, with the selection committee meeting 10-12 August, results on 17 August and the online programme running 20 August to 19 October.
What you get
- A structured two-month online incubation programme
- Expert, business and technical mentoring
- Industry connect and access to infrastructure and facilities
- Pilot opportunities and market linkages, and connects for funding
- Selected ventures can go on to physical incubation, one-to-one mentoring and technology validation at a spoke centre
Who can apply
- Indian citizens with an innovation, idea, product or solution relevant to agriculture
- No stage, incorporation or geography gate is published
How selection works: Applications go through the designated hub and spoke centres, supported by outreach, boot camps and awareness programmes, and then through a two-stage evaluation conducted jointly by the hub and spoke centres. Selected startups get official confirmation and are enrolled.
How to apply: Through the designated hub and spoke ICAR agribusiness incubation centres when the next edition opens.
Where to apply
Other Pusa Krishi, ICAR-IARI programmes
- ARISEPusa Krishi's entry-level incubation programme for idea and prototype-stage agri innovations, which opens into a year of incubation with grant support.
- UPJAIncubation programme for agri startups with a product already at minimum viable product stage, carrying Pusa Krishi's largest grant support.
- SHITIJA year-long incubation programme that opens with fifteen days of in-person training and mentoring at Pusa Krishi.
- BEEJA fourteen-day online pre-incubation masterclass series for students and first-time founders in agri-tech, ending in a certificate.
- Her HarvestA five-day online workshop series with women entrepreneurs and changemakers, charged as a one-time fee.
- MAITRIPusa Krishi's international collaboration programme, whose India-Brazil editions brought startups and incubators together in 2019, 2021 and 2025.
- SAMARTHA capacity-building programme for agri-incubators and incubation managers in the RKVY-RAFTAAR network — not a startup intake.
- Agripreneurship development trainingsShort, paid, hands-on courses at the Pusa campus run with ICAR-IARI's subject divisions — the one thing usually open to register for between intakes.