AICTE approves Rs 245-crore doctoral fellowship for innovation

The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has approved the AICTE Innovation and Entrepreneurship Doctoral Fellowship Programme (AIEDFP). With a projected financial outlay of Rs 245 crore over five years, the initiative aims to support 150 PhD fellowships to strengthen the nation's innovation-driven research ecosystem.

The programme focuses on high-quality, problem-driven, and application-oriented research in areas such as technology transfer, commercialisation, and societal impact. It supports both technological and non-technological innovation through multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary research.

Fellows will receive Rs 60,000 per month plus House Rent Allowance (HRA) for the first three years, increasing to Rs 70,000 per month plus HRA for the following two years. Additionally, scholars may receive an Innovation Grant of up to Rs 10 lakh to fund activities like prototype development, testing, field trials, and data collection to translate research into deployable solutions.