Deadline Date: January 16, 2026
The DST–NIDHI iTBI program at the National Institute of Technology Agartala invites startups and innovators to apply for structured incubation and ignition support designed to help scale innovation-driven ventures.
The focus areas, objectives, and priorities of the program include Agri-Tech, Food Tech, Energy and Sustainability, Urban and Rural Development, Bio-composites and Construction Materials, ITES and AI, technology readiness level enhancement, access to incubation infrastructure, mentorship and capacity building, fundraising opportunities, and financial support for early-stage startups. The incubation support application portal is open from 1st January 2026 to March 2026 on a rolling basis. Through this initiative, NITA-FIIE aims to create a supportive ecosystem that enables startups to grow by providing co-working space, access to advanced laboratories, expert mentorship, training programs, and financial assistance.
The program offers two types of support. Pre-incubation is designed for non-registered startups and provides a three-month support period that includes co-working space, mentorship, training, and access to infrastructure without financial assistance. The incubation program is open to registered startups and includes all incubation facilities along with financial support. Selected startups must undergo a three-stage selection process consisting of primary screening, a minimum three-month incubation program, and final selection for ignition grant support. After primary screening, up to 20 startups may be provided incubation facilities, and following successful completion of the incubation period, up to 10 startups may receive ignition grant support based on merit.
The ignition grant ranges from a minimum of Rs 2 lakh to a maximum of Rs 10 lakh. The objective of this grant is to help startups raise their technology readiness levels and improve their ability to secure further funding, including opportunities facilitated through the DST–iTBI incubation center. Certain activities and entities are not eligible for support under the program. These include funding for personal payments, repayment of existing loans, rent or infrastructure creation, pure software or app-based solutions, e-commerce or service-only models, research funding, student internships, projects beyond the prototype stage, startups older than two years, startups with annual turnover exceeding Rs. 25 lakhs, and founders who have already availed similar grants, subject to the final decision of the incubation center.
For more information, visit NIT Agartala.
