Indian government grants for startups & MSMEs.
Non-dilutive funding — no equity, no debt. Pure grants from central, state, and sectoral programmes. Use the finder to narrow these down by stage, sector, and geography.
Grants are the highest-leverage form of government funding because they are non-dilutive and non-repayable. They are also the most competitive. The big four for Indian tech founders are SISFS (up to ₹20 L grant + ₹50 L convertible), BIRAC BIG for biotech (up to ₹50 L), iDEX SPARK for defence (up to ₹1.5 Cr), and IN-SPACe Seed Fund for space (up to ₹1 Cr).
State grants are often easier to win and stack on top of central grants. Karnataka ELEVATE (₹50 L), Telangana T-SEED, TANSEED Tamil Nadu (₹10-15 L), Kerala KSUM tiered grants (₹3-15 L) are among the strongest state-level grant programmes.
Schemes that apply
23 schemes
Startup India Seed Fund Scheme
Up to ₹20 L grant for PoC/prototype + up to ₹50 L convertible/debt for market entry. Apply to up to 3 incubators. ₹605+ Cr deployed to 3,400+ startups.
ASPIRE — Innovation, Rural Industries & Entrepreneurship
Funds Livelihood and Tech Business Incubators. Founder play: get hand-holding via an ASPIRE-funded incubator for rural/agri-rural enterprise.
SAMRIDH — MeitY Startup Accelerator
Up to ₹40 L matching investment via accelerator. ~300 startups targeted; 373 supported as of Feb 2026.
SFURTI — Scheme for Regeneration of Traditional Industries
Cluster-based programme for traditional artisans. Funds common facility centres, market linkages, design support, capacity building. Strong fit for traditional manufacturing and handicrafts founders.
BIRAC BIG — Biotechnology Ignition Grant
Up to ₹50 L for biotech idea-to-PoC. Hard exclusion: OCI/PIO holders ineligible.
NIDHI-PRAYAS
Up to ₹10 L for prototype development. Routed through TBIs.
NIDHI-EIR — Entrepreneur in Residence
Monthly stipend (~₹30K) for 12 months to de-risk quitting your job. Underused — gives runway before company formation.
Atal Incubation Centres (AIC)
AIM funds incubators (₹10 Cr over 5 yrs). Founder play: partner with one of 50+ AICs. Application portal currently closed (early 2026).
iDEX SPARK / DISC
Up to ₹1.5 Cr SPARK grant for defence prototype against problem statements. Procurement path via DAP 2020.
iDEX Prime / ADITI 2.0/3.0
Prime: up to ₹10 Cr for advanced tech. ADITI: up to ₹25 Cr for next-gen defence. Plus iDEX4Fauji and INDUS-X tracks.
IN-SPACe Seed Fund
Up to ₹1 Cr at idea/prototype stage for spacetech with mentoring. 400+ space startups.
IN-SPACe Technology Adoption Fund
₹500 Cr corpus. Up to 60% of project cost (₹25 Cr cap) for spacetech commercialisation.
Karnataka ELEVATE / ELEVATE NxT
Gold-standard state programme. Up to ₹50 L one-time seed grant, zero equity. NxT: up to ₹1 Cr for Deep Tech. 1,230+ startups funded.
Telangana T-Fund / T-SEED
T-Hub is India's largest incubator. T-Fund: ₹25 L–₹1 Cr co-investment. ₹1,000 Cr FoF (Dec 2025, AI focus). Pavala Vaddi 9% subvention.
Maharashtra MahaFund / MSInS
₹500 Cr MahaFund + MSInS Seed Fund. India's highest IPR reimbursement: ₹2 L domestic / ₹20 L international patents.
TANSEED + iTNT Hub
TANSEED 6.0: ₹10-15 L grant. iTNT Hub: up to ₹50 L for R&D-heavy DeepTech. ₹100 Cr Co-creation Fund. 12,000+ startups (50% women-led).
Gujarat SSIP 2.0
India's strongest student-startup framework. iCreate (Ahmedabad): hardware/IoT/renewables.
Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM)
Tiered grants: idea (₹3-5 L), MVP (₹5-7 L), market acceleration (₹10-15 L). Virtual incubation. NRI-friendly.
MP Startup Policy 2025
₹100 Cr seed capital fund. Grants up to ₹30 L + interest subsidies + subsistence allowance.
iStart Rajasthan
Large district-level network of incubators (Jaipur, Kota, Bikaner). Sustenance allowance, marketing and IP support.
UP Startup Policy + Fund of Funds
₹1,000 Cr Fund of Funds (SIDBI-managed). Plus seed capital, patent/IPR reimbursement, marketing support.
WE Hub — Women Entrepreneurs Hub
First state-led women-only incubator in India. Sector-agnostic.
MeitY TIDE 2.0
Up to ₹7 L for IT product startups via empanelled incubators.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to give equity for these grants?+
For pure grants (SISFS grant portion, BIRAC BIG, iDEX SPARK, IN-SPACe Seed, Karnataka ELEVATE, TANSEED), no — equity dilution is none. Some hybrid programmes like SISFS convertible portion and NIDHI-SSS take convertible or equity for the larger ticket.
What is the largest non-dilutive grant for Indian startups?+
For defence tech: iDEX ADITI up to ₹25 Cr. For space tech: IN-SPACe TAF up to ₹25 Cr (60% of project cost). For broad-sector: SISFS up to ₹20 L grant + ₹50 L convertible. For biotech: BIRAC BIG up to ₹50 L.
Are these grants taxable?+
Generally grants from government to startups are not treated as income if structured correctly under the scheme guidelines. DPIIT-recognised startups also enjoy Section 56(2)(viib) exemption on certain capital infusions. Consult a CA for your specific case — this site is not tax advice.