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.
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.
Phase 1: 2 month online learning & mentoring sessions
Phase 2: 1 year incubation program
- An Indian citizen
- Have an innovation in agriculture & allied sectors at MVP (Minimum Viable Product) Stage
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.
- Received a grant-in-aid support from any Government of India sponsored schemes of INR 10,00,000 or more for the same product/ service
Important dates for UPJA 2024:
01 April 2024: Registrations Open
30 April 2024: Application Deadline
07 May 2024: Announcement of 1st Screening Result
22 May 2024: Cohort Announcement
27 May 2024: One-month incubation and training starts
In case you have received a grant-in-aid support of INR 10,00,000 or more under any Government of India sponsored scheme then you are not eligible for UPJA.
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.