NIDHI-EIR

The NIDHI-EIR Programme is an entrepreneurship fellowship / grant in the form of a stipend to an aspiring or budding entrepreneur with a potential for pursuing a promising technology business idea.

• Encourage graduating students to take to entrepreneurship by providing support as a fellowship.
• Provide a prestigious forum for entrepreneurs to pursue their ventures without any additional risks involved in technology based businesses.
• Make pursuing entrepreneurship related to a technology business idea more attractive amongst available career options.
• Enable creation of new start-ups by entrepreneurs and significant progress towards raising funding or investment.

• A grant support of INR 10 – 30 K per month for a period of 12 months.
• Guidance from mentors & experts on idea to product conversion, business concepts related to commercialization of the idea.
• Access to co-working spaces and lab facilities for prototyping subject to policies of Incubation Centre.

Typical NIDHI-EIR needing the support is a first generation innovative entrepreneur, who has no prior source of income. The ideal candidates will be those individuals who

• Want to embark on an entrepreneurial journey, but have no entrepreneurial experience.
• Wants to validate an idea that they have, before committing significant resources.
• Are exploring a business idea alone and are looking for co-founders.
• Have been unsuccessful in their attempt to startup, and want to give it a try again using the lessons from previous attempt.

EIR candidates will explore a technology based business idea to

• Bring more clarity on its potential for commercialization.
• Develop business plan for development and commercialization of the idea.
• Validate industry, market, technical and financial feasibility using appropriate methods.
• Find potential team members and funding sources.
• Get incubated at Incubation centre IIT Patna for product development and commercialization support, subject to its policies.

NIDHI-EIR support recipient should not treat this support as a stop gap arrangement to support them in their academic pursuits or transition between jobs.

• The EIR applicant should be citizen of India.
• Applicant should have completed 4 years of formal full time undergraduate/post graduate education (across one or more degree programs) with graduation /diploma in science or engineering. Applicants holding 3 years degree /diploma in science or engineering with 2 year full time work experience after completion of degree or diploma are also eligible.
• Applicant shall be willing to pursue the business idea under NIDHI EIR full time. It cannot be concurrent with any other remuneration or fellowship.
• The applicant shall propose one technology business idea in a prescribed format and should have a formal business plan for the idea they intend to pursue.
• Applicant seeking the support should demonstrate the ability to build a scalable technology business startup and make a business presentation including the investment proposal.
• The applicant should be willing to be registered for the pre-incubation or incubation program at the Incubation Centre IIT Patna for the entire duration of NIDHI-EIR support.

• You are the promoter or significant share-holder (holding above 10% of shares) / beneficiary of another company at the time of applying for and receiving the grant approval.
• You or your team members have availed of any NIDHI-EIR grant in the past. NIDHI-EIR can be used only once (ie. If you have received EIR support from one incubator, you cannot avail it further from the same or different incubators).
• You have received similar grant support previously for the same innovative concept proposed for support under NIDHI EIR.
• You or Team members are already being supported under NIDHI-PRAYAS or NIDHI – EIR from any incubator.

Electronics Systems, Healthcare Devices, Energy and water management, agritech, edutech, robotics, IOT and automation, Robotics and mechatronics, speech/text/image analytics and other emerging sectors.

• Technology business ideas with larger technology uncertainties and/ or long gestation periods.
• Technology business ideas leveraging technology or IP from publicly funded research or academic organizations.
• Technology business ideas with considerable potential for social impact or job creation.
• Women entrepreneurs.

Send your completed applications to: nidhieir.ic@iitp.ac.in