Education Ministry Launches Rs 5.4 Crore Seva First Innovation Challenge 2026
Students and young innovators can apply for the Seva First Innovation Challenge 2026 by October 24, with ₹5.4 crore in prizes and incubation support.
The Ministry of Education has opened registrations for the Seva First Innovation Challenge (SFIC) 2026, inviting students and young innovators to develop practical solutions for real-world problems. The national initiative offers a total prize pool of ₹5.4 crore along with mentorship, technical guidance and incubation support.
Registrations and submissions opened on September 25 and will remain available until October 24, 2026. The challenge is aimed at encouraging participants to identify problems within their communities and transform their ideas into solutions that can potentially be tested, adopted and scaled.
SFIC 2026 is being organised under the broader Viksit Bharat @2047 vision, with an emphasis on combining innovation and technology with social impact. Participants can explore challenges across areas including agriculture, healthcare, education, sustainability, waste management, artificial intelligence, robotics, cybersecurity and clean technology.
Three categories for participants
The competition has three participation categories. The Junior category is open to students from Classes 6 to 12. The Technical category is intended for students enrolled in Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and polytechnics.
The Open category covers undergraduate students as well as postgraduate students and research scholars, giving participants from higher education an opportunity to present more advanced solutions.
The challenge is being conducted across Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana, along with the Union Territories of Lakshadweep, Puducherry and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Selected participants can receive expert mentorship, technical assistance and access to laboratories and fabrication facilities. Incubation and pilot support may also be provided to help promising concepts move beyond the presentation stage.
Entries will be assessed on factors including relevance, originality, feasibility, potential impact and scalability.
With a ₹5.4 crore prize pool and support extending beyond the competition itself, SFIC 2026 is designed to give young participants a pathway from identifying everyday problems to developing solutions that could be tested in the real world.
