North East Seva First Innovation Challenge 2026 (NESFIC 2026) — Ashtalakshmi for Viksit Bharat

About

NESFIC 2026 is a Government of Assam innovation challenge inviting startups and innovators from anywhere in India to solve 50 real government and industry problem statements, with idea-stage support and grants of up to ₹40 lakh for selected solutions.

Benefits

• 💰Funding — Up to ₹10 lakh for idea-stage support under the Assam Startup Policy, subject to selection and assessment
• 💰Funding — Up to ₹20 lakh MVP/prototype grant; at Demo Day, the best startup for each challenge receives a ₹20 lakh MVP grant
• 💰Funding — Up to ₹40 lakh for eligible deep-technology solutions
• 🤝Mentorship — Selected startups receive mentoring support from partner institutions, conditional on selection
• 🧪Testing and data — Selected startups work with the relevant problem owner using relevant data and testing sites, conditional on selection
• 🏛️ Government procurement pathway — For 40 departmental challenges, a proposed Swiss Challenge mechanism with Right of First Refusal; for 10 industry challenges, possible purchase orders, paid pilots, supply agreements or licensing deals, subject to further agreement
• 🌐Ecosystem support — Access to incubation, technical expertise, data and test sites as part of the NESFIC support package, conditional on selection

Eligibility Criteria

• Mandatory: Startups, companies, LLPs, registered entities, individual innovators, researchers, professionals and student teams are eligible. Applicants may be from anywhere in India; eligibility is not restricted to North East India. DPIIT recognition is not required. Teams may have up to 5 members. Preferred: No preferred criteria are publicly stated. Limits: A maximum of two idea-stage grants and one MVP grant per edition.

Participation Commitments

• Selected startups are expected to work closely with the respective problem owner using relevant data and testing sites from November 2026 to February 2027
• Selected teams are expected to participate in the Demo Day in February 2027.

Target Region

India — open to applicants from anywhere in India; the challenge is Pan-India and not restricted to North East India.

Target Sector

Agriculture & Food, Energy & Utilities, Government & Public Sector, Healthcare & Life Sciences, Other, Transportation & Logistics