the^delta

Pick the right route

• A new nonprofit working on livelihoods: the incubator is the front door. It is the only route with an open call for early-stage organisations.
• Already through the incubator, with a model that works: the accelerator, which you reach by progression rather than by applying.
• A nonprofit using AI or technology: Pragati AI for Impact, run with Meta.
• An organisation that can run a field pilot against a hard target: a prize challenge. Check each challenge's own eligibility — one recent challenge accepted for-profit companies, another required a Section 8 company.

Check you clear the incubator gate before writing anything

• You must be a nonprofit, or committed to registering as a Section 8 company, trust or society by the date in the call. For-profit companies are turned away.
• Nought to three years old, with a proof of concept or a working product. Three to five years is fine only if you are starting a new livelihoods initiative.
• At least one founder full time. Not a chief executive, not a part-time founder.
• The work must be about livelihoods. Everything else is out of scope.

How the incubator application works

• Round one is a form about the problem you are solving, your approach and your team.
• Shortlisted applicants get ten days to send a business plan as a presentation, so have the material roughly ready before you apply.
• Then three rounds of interviews with the^delta team and its partners.

What the business plan should cover

• The problem and your solution.
• Who you serve and what they need.
• The landscape you work in and what makes your approach different.
• How you measure impact.
• Your organisation's journey so far and what comes next.
• The founding team and what it is good at.

What they look for, and what they expect back

• Depth over volume. the^delta says the incubator is deliberately selective and high-touch.
• Availability. Founders are expected to join portfolio calls, mentoring and workshops, and bootcamps are in person and compulsory.
• Evidence. The prize challenges are built on measurable thresholds and field validation, so bring numbers rather than intent.
• A path to scale. Moving from the incubator to the accelerator is earned, not automatic.

Practical points

• Pragati applicants need 12A and 80G certificates valid to 31 March 2027, recent financial statements, a pitch deck, a proposal in the format provided, and an FCRA certificate where it applies. Gather these early.
• Ask about fees, reporting duties and grant conditions. None are published.
• There is no office address or phone number. Write to socent@thedelta.org.in for the incubator, pragati@thedelta.org.in for Pragati and prize@thedelta.org.in for the challenges.

the^delta works with Indian nonprofits that are building livelihoods for low-income and marginalised communities. It is the working name of AIC NCore Developmental Impact Foundation, a Section 8 company set up as an Atal Incubation Centre under the Atal Innovation Mission at NITI Aayog, with Nudge Life Skills Foundation as its host institution; the memorandum of understanding between NITI Aayog, Nudge Life Skills Foundation and AIC NCore was signed on 11 September 2018. Several of its programmes ran earlier under The/Nudge name, and its site still refers to alumni of The/Nudge Incubator and The/Nudge Accelerator.

There are four routes in: the incubator, the accelerator, Pragati AI for Impact run with Meta, and the^delta prize, a series of open challenges. Each has its own call, eligibility and form; there is no general application.

Who can apply

The incubator is for nonprofits only, and its own answer to whether for-profit organisations can apply is a flat no. You can apply if you are already a registered nonprofit, or if you plan to register as a Section 8 company, trust or society by the date given in the call. The organisation should be nought to three years old, with a proof of concept or a working product, and at least one founder working full time on it. A chief executive cannot apply in place of a founder, and part-time founders are not eligible. Organisations three to five years old can apply if they are launching a new livelihoods initiative.

The focus is narrow and stated plainly: resilient livelihoods. That covers income generation, skilling and employability, entrepreneurship development, access to markets, finance or technology, and strengthening livelihood ecosystems. If your work is not livelihoods, the incubator says not to apply, though an organisation with a livelihoods initiative inside it may apply for that initiative. Technology-enabled and traditional models are both accepted, and earlier incubation or grants do not disqualify you.

No state or city restriction is stated, and the portfolio it publishes spans sixteen states and union territories.

The prize challenges work differently, and eligibility changes from challenge to challenge. The aahaar bazaar challenge, on market access for home-based women food entrepreneurs, was open to both for-profit and non-profit organisations, the latter with valid FCRA licences. The rapid re.gen challenge, on soil regeneration, was an open call for nonprofits and civil society organisations, and requires registration as a Section 8 company with valid CSR-1, 12A and 80G certificates. Read the challenge before assuming a for-profit company can enter.

The incubator and the accelerator

The incubator runs for nine months and the accelerator for twelve, which the site describes as a cumulative twenty-one month journey. Moving from one to the other is earned, not automatic.

Incubator participants get an innovation grant, mentoring and hands-on support across the nine months, a peer group and sector network, bootcamps, masterclasses, one-to-one mentoring and portfolio support on product, capital and execution. Mentoring is remote; bootcamps are in person and attendance is mandatory, so plan for travel. It is a high-touch programme, and founders are expected to be available for portfolio calls, mentoring and workshops.

Selection runs in three steps: an application form covering the problem, your solution and your team; a business plan as a presentation from shortlisted applicants within ten days; then three rounds of interviews with the^delta team and its partners.

The accelerator is not an open call. It works with organisations that have come through the incubator with a validated model, and focuses on strengthening the organisation, unlocking capital and getting the model adopted, in four stages: transition, diagnostic, growth strategy and scale support. Organisations with a proven model ready to scale are invited to get in touch rather than apply.

the^delta prize

The prize runs outcome-linked challenges rather than an incubation cohort. the^delta writes a sector diagnostic first, frames a problem statement with measurable thresholds, invites solutions, has them tested in the field, and rewards what works. Its themes are micro, small and medium enterprise, the future of women in work, and climate and livelihoods, and it publishes research reports on each.

Two challenges were live at the time of writing, both with applications closed: the rapid re.gen challenge on soil regeneration for smallholder farmers, and the aahaar bazaar challenge on market access for home-based women food entrepreneurs. Challengers get milestone-linked grants, one-to-one mentorship, introductions to philanthropy and impact investors, ecosystem access, masterclasses and media visibility. Past challenges were run with Ashirvad, Cisco and DCM Shriram, and their pages still sit on The/Nudge site.

Pragati AI for Impact

Pragati is a twelve-month programme run with Meta as technology collaborator, for nonprofits using AI or other technology to improve income and productivity. Applicants must be a registered Indian trust, Section 8 company or society, between one and ten years old or an alumni organisation of the former The/Nudge incubator or accelerator, with an annual budget above a stated threshold and technology integral to operations. Supported solutions must be non-commercial, and a working prototype, pilot or proof of concept is expected. Applications need 12A and 80G certificates valid to 31 March 2027, recent financial statements, a pitch deck and a proposal in the format given. Selection is a proposal, then up to three interview rounds including a technical one.

What it costs

The site does not state a participation fee for any programme, and it does not state an equity or revenue-share position anywhere. Support is described throughout as grants to nonprofit organisations, and the incubator says the grant can go towards building or refining the solution, pilot costs, hiring, programme development and anything else that strengthens impact and scale. Because no terms are published, ask about fees, reporting and any conditions on the grant before you sign.

Track record

The numbers are self-reported, undated and do not agree with each other. The incubator page counts 126 nonprofits incubated and the accelerator page 35 accelerated, with more than 200 awards won by alumni, while the portfolio page lists 105 organisations and a book on the homepage says more than 250 social entrepreneurs. Named organisations in the portfolio and in alumni quotes include NavGurukul, Karya, Mitti Cafe, Labhya Foundation, Khushi Baby, MukkaMaar, Khetee, I-Stem, Adalat AI, RightWalk Foundation, Farmers for Forests and Protsahan India Foundation.

Who runs it

Subhashree Dutta is chief executive officer, Kanishka Chatterjee is managing director for the prize, and Vidya Shenoy is managing director for social entrepreneurship. The board listed on the site is Vikas Agnihotri, formerly an operating partner at SoftBank, and Piyush Shah, co-founder of InMobi. A wider list of advisers appears on the incubator and accelerator pages; named partners include Meta, Mphasis and State Street Foundation.

How to apply

Apply to a specific programme when its call is open, from that programme's page. The incubator's 2026 cohort closed on 15 May 2026 and started on 1 July 2026, so watch for the next call. Questions go to socent@thedelta.org.in for the incubator, pragati@thedelta.org.in for Pragati and prize@thedelta.org.in for the challenges. There is no office address or phone number, so email is the only route in.