UPJA

Incubation Program for Innovations in Agriculture

A special initiative incubation program by Pusa Krishi, ICAR-IARI, nurturing early-stage innovators & entrepreneurs to transform the future of agriculture. Upja provides technology validation, mentoring & guidance, pilot opportunities, go-to market support, and industry linkage to startups with innovative solutions at MVP (Minimum Viable Product) stage.

Benefits

Upto INR 25,00,000 Grant-in-Aid

Technology Validation & Backstopping.

Pilot Opportunities

Business Mentoring from Industry Leaders.

Access to Cutting-Edge Infrastructure.

Market Linkages & Investor’s Connect.

Our Focus Area

Farm Mechanization

Precision Agriculture

Supply Chain & Agriculture Logistics

Post-Harvest, Food Technology & Value addition

Waste to Wealth & Green Energy

Agriculture Allied Sectors

Agri Fintech

Agricultural Inputs & Biotechnology

Natural Resource Management

Agriculture Extension & Education

Program Timeline

How it Works

Roadmap of the journey from ‘Lab to Market’ with Upja

Phase 1

1-Month Incubation & Training Program

What Happens: Once selected, our startups and innovators receive transformational support. The selected individuals & groups participate in mentoring and coaching with our technical experts, business & thought leaders. They also get access to our powerful network of startups & founders. This is one of the strongest networks of changemakers who are transforming agriculture & allied sectors.

The Results: The participants’ prototype is passed through multiple technical validations, business assessments, IP, and other checks to create a feasible, viable, and scalable product ready for the market. Finally, the participants get to pitch their product to our panel of experts and the selected startups get incubation facility with a Grant-in-Aid of up to Rs. 25,00,000.

Phase 2

15 days Training Program

What Happens: The selected startups receive mentoring and grant-in-aid of up to Rs. 25,00,000 (in 2-tranches) to commercially launch their product. They are mentored to run & sustain their business, grow their market linkages & connections, and develop a plan for scaling up. The start-ups also get field trials and pilot opportunities alongside.

The Results: In the program, our startups develop a better product & business acumen, their professional network grows in quantity as well as quality, and they have more options of raising money.

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Applications Received
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Startups Incubated
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Startups Funded
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Grant-in-Aid(INR Cr)

Frequently Asked Questions

After the 2-month online training & mentoring, the startups pitch their product/ service to our jury. The shortlisted startups have an opportunity to be a part of our 1-year incubation program with an initial Grant-in-Aid of upto INR 25,00,000.

UPJA is a 2-phase program. Here’s an overview of what happens:

Phase 1: 2 month online learning & mentoring sessions
Phase 2: 1 year incubation program

Upja recognises early-stage innovations in the field of agriculture & allied sectors. You should apply, if you are:

  • An Indian citizen
  • Have an innovation in agriculture & allied sectors at MVP (Minimum Viable Product) Stage

Every year, through a rigorous open application process, our panel of evaluators select some of the most promising ideas & prototypes to be a part of Upja. The applications are evaluated on various parameters — including but not limited to — need, novelty, technical feasibility, business viability, scalability, social impact, market size, team capabilities, and projected financial growth.

After the application round, the shortlisted applicants appear for a selection committee interview. If selected in the interview, the applicants are allotted their cohort for the 2-month pre-incubation program.

No. You do not have to pay any fee or charges to apply for UPJA.

Pusa Krishi, ICAR-IARI reserves the right to disqualify any application if

  • found engaged in any frauds, malpractices, or unethical activities.
  • Any organization/ individual applying for the program should have not been blacklisted by the government or any major agency/ entity, and have no pending litigation in any court of law. The applicant is obligated to inform Pusa Krishi in case of any change in status of the aforementioned.

No.

Applicants who have previously received grant funding under any State or Central Government scheme are not eligible to apply.

The 2-month training will take place online on video conferencing.

Due to the high volume of applications which we receive, we are unable to provide feedback to all the applicants. The selected applicants receive complete mentoring, training & support throughout the program.

Yes, you can save your application and complete it later. Once submitted, the application cannot be edited.

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