The Ministry of Science & Technology provided a detailed parliamentary update on the Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research (INSPIRE) Programme's performance over the last five years (2021-22 to 2025-26). The programme systematically nurtures scientific talent through four components with specific financial support structures.
INSPIRE MANAK promotes innovation among students aged 10-17 years (Classes VI-XII) by encouraging original ideas and innovations. INSPIRE Scholarship for Higher Education (SHE) supports meritorious students aged 17-22 years pursuing undergraduate and postgraduate studies in natural and basic sciences with 12,000 scholarships annually valued at ₹80,000 per year. INSPIRE Fellowship supports outstanding graduates and INSPIRE scholars pursuing full-time Ph.D. programmes with financial support up to five years, including a fellowship of ₹37,000 per month as Junior Research Fellow (JRF), ₹42,000 per month as Senior Research Fellow (SRF), admissible House Rent Allowance (HRA), and an annual contingency grant of ₹20,000. INSPIRE Faculty Fellowship supports postdoctoral researchers (generally 27-32 years) through a five-year fellowship providing ₹1,25,000 per month, an annual increment of ₹2,000, and a research grant of ₹35 lakh over the fellowship period.
The component-wise support numbers show: INSPIRE-MANAK supported 52,720 (2021-22), 43,381 (2022-23), 46,926 (2023-24), 50,009 (2024-25), and 49,805 (2025-26) students. INSPIRE-SHE supported 18,039 (2021-22), 19,771 (2022-23), 18,236 (2023-24), 20,354 (2024-25), and 24,276 (2025-26) scholars. INSPIRE Fellowship supported 2,768 (2021-22), 2,872 (2022-23), 2,811 (2023-24), 2,448 (2024-25), and 3,364 (2025-26) fellows. INSPIRE Faculty Fellowship supported 474 (2021-22), 338 (2022-23), 299 (2023-24), 225 (2024-25), and 477 (2025-26) faculty members.
The government has undertaken targeted interventions to expand outreach with focus on rural, remote and aspirational districts, including dissemination through State Education Departments, District Education Officers, schools and digital platforms; organization of awareness campaigns, orientation programmes, webinars, and capacity-building workshops for teachers; and conduct of District, State, and National Level Exhibition and Project Competitions (DLEPCs, SLEPCs, and NLEPCs). Mentorship programmes have been organized with premier institutions (IITs, NITs, IISERs) to provide guidance on prototype development and scientific research.