NIDHI PRAYAS Grant 2025: How Indian Students Can Get ₹10 Lakh for Prototypes

If you are an engineering student or young innovator in India, you know the “Valley of Death.” It’s that gap between having a brilliant idea on paper and having a working physical prototype to show investors. You can’t get VC money with just a PowerPoint, but you can’t build the prototype without money.

Enter NIDHI PRAYAS.

PRAYAS (Promoting and Accelerating Young and Aspiring innovators and Startups) is arguably the most critical government scheme for early-stage hardware and deep-tech founders in India. It offers a grant of up to ₹10 Lakhs (approx. $12,000) specifically to build your prototype.

Unlike equity investment, this is a grant. You don’t give up any shares of your future company. The Department of Science and Technology (DST) basically says, “Here is the money to prove your technology works. Go build it.”

But it’s not just about the cash. The program gives you a roof over your head at a PRAYAS Centre (PC)—usually a top-tier incubator at an IIT, NIT, or private university—where you get access to labs, mentors, and fabrication units.

Key Details at a Glance

What This Opportunity Offers

The NIDHI PRAYAS program is designed to take you from TRL 3 (Proof of Concept) to TRL 5/6 (Prototype validated in relevant environment).

1. The ₹10 Lakh Grant This money is strictly for prototyping. You can use it for:

• Outsourcing: Paying a vendor to 3D print a complex part or machine a chassis.
• Raw Materials: Buying sensors, microcontrollers (Arduino/Raspberry Pi), steel, chemicals, etc.
• IP Protection: Filing your provisional patent.
• Consultancy: Paying a design expert to review your CAD models.

Note: You generally cannot use this for your own salary or founder stipend. It is for the “thing,” not the “person.”

2. The PRAYAS Centre (PC) You don’t just get money transferred to your bank account. You get attached to a PRAYAS Centre. These are incubators like IIT Bombay’s SINE, IIT Kanpur’s SIIC, or T-Hub. You get:

• Maker Space Access: Laser cutters, CNC machines, PCB printing stations.
• Mentorship: Weekly or monthly reviews with industry experts who tell you why your design will fail (so you can fix it).
• Co-working Space: A desk to work from, surrounded by other builders.

Who Should Apply

This grant is for Innovators, not just “Business Owners.”

You SHOULD Apply If:

• You are building a physical product: A new type of agricultural drone, a low-cost medical diagnostic device, a smart helmet, or an IoT device for factories.
• You are a “Maker”: You know your way around a soldering iron or CAD software. You are hands-on.
• You are a Student or Recent Grad: You are currently in college or graduated less than 2 years ago. (Some centers allow older applicants, but the focus is on youth).
• You have no other funding: If you have already raised angel investment, you might be considered “too advanced.”

You Should NOT Apply If:

• You are building a pure software app: If you are making a food delivery app or an e-commerce website, this is likely not for you. NIDHI PRAYAS favors “hard” innovation.
• You just have an idea: You need to have done some homework. A literature review, a basic cardboard mockup, or a simulation is required.
• You want a salary: If you need money to pay your rent, look for the NIDHI EIR (Entrepreneur-in-Residence) program instead. PRAYAS is for the product costs.

Insider Tips for a Winning Application

I have seen many students get rejected because they treated this like a college assignment. It is not. It is a pre-startup grant.

1. Choose the Right PRAYAS Centre This is the most critical hack. There are dozens of PRAYAS Centres across India. Don’t just apply to the one closest to your house. Apply to the one that specializes in your field.

• Building a medical device? Apply to a center at a medical college or one with a strong bio-incubator (like VENTURE Center Pune).
• Building an agritech bot? Apply to an incubator at an agricultural university.
• Why? Because the selection committee at those centers will actually understand your innovation.

2. Show the “IP Potential” The government wants to fund things that can be patented. In your application, explicitly state: “This technology is novel because [X]. Existing solutions use [Y], which is inefficient. Our approach allows us to file a patent for [Z].”

3. Have a “Bill of Materials” (BOM) Ready When they ask “How will you spend the ₹10 Lakhs?”, don’t guess. Have an Excel sheet ready.

• “Motor Drivers: ₹50,000”
• “PCB Fabrication: ₹25,000”
• “Industrial Design Consultant: ₹1,00,000” This shows you know exactly what you are doing.

4. Focus on the “Problem Statement” Don’t fall in love with your solution. Fall in love with the problem. Spend 40% of your pitch explaining why the current situation is terrible and how big the market is. “Farmers lose 30% of crops due to this pest. That is a ₹500 Crore loss annually.”

Application Timeline

• August - September: Scout for PRAYAS Centres. Check their websites. Each center has its own cycle, but many align with the academic year.
• October: Prepare your proposal. Draft your technical diagrams and BOM.
• November 15: Common deadline for many centers (verify individual dates!).
• December - January: Screening. You will be called for a presentation (online or offline).
• February: Final approval by the Project Management Committee (PMC).
• March: Funds disbursement begins (usually in tranches).

Required Materials

• Proposal Document: A detailed write-up of your idea (problem, solution, technology, market).
• Technical Diagrams: CAD drawings, circuit schematics, or flowcharts.
• Budget Plan: Detailed breakdown of the ₹10 Lakhs.
• Resume/CV: Highlight your technical projects, not your grades.
• NOC (No Objection Certificate): If you are employed or a student, you might need permission to spend time on this.

What Makes an Application Stand Out

Feasibility. The committee is composed of professors and industry veterans. They have seen it all. If you claim you will build a fusion reactor for ₹10 Lakhs, they will laugh.

• Be realistic. “We will build a sub-scale prototype that demonstrates the core function.”
• Acknowledge risks. “The main challenge is the battery life. We plan to mitigate this by…”

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Treating it like a Science Fair Project This is about commercialization. If your invention is cool but nobody will buy it, you won’t get funded. You must have a “Path to Market” slide.

2. Ignoring the “Hardware” Bias If you apply with a pure software idea, your chances drop significantly unless it is deep-tech AI or cybersecurity. If you can add a hardware component (even a simple IoT sensor), your chances improve.

3. Being Vague about the Money “Miscellaneous Expenses: ₹2 Lakhs” is a red flag. Every rupee must be accounted for.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I apply to multiple PRAYAS Centres? Technically, yes. But you can only receive the grant from one. It is better to focus on the 2-3 centers that are the best fit for your domain.

Do I need to register a Private Limited company? Not initially. You can apply as an individual (PRAYASEE). However, once you build the prototype and want to commercialize, you will be expected to register a company.

What happens if my prototype fails? It is a grant, not a loan. You don’t have to pay it back. However, you must submit a “Project Completion Report” explaining what you learned and why it failed. The government accepts failure as part of innovation.

Can I take a salary from the grant? No. The PRAYAS grant is for prototyping costs. If you need a stipend for living expenses, you should apply for the NIDHI EIR (Entrepreneur-in-Residence) program, which pays ₹30,000/month for 12 months. You can often hold both grants simultaneously!

How to Apply

1. Find a Centre: Go to the official NIDHI website or search “NIDHI PRAYAS Centre list.”
2. Contact the Manager: Email the incubation manager at your chosen center. Ask about their specific deadline.
3. Submit: Use the center’s specific application portal.

Start your search here: https://www.nidhi.gov.in/prayas