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Technopreneur Promotion Programme

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Last week, I came across an interesting ad by the Ministry of Science and Technology in The Economic Times and The Hindu inviting proposals for the "Technopreneur Promotion Programme (TePP)" .

The TePP aims to extend financial support to "individual innovators for converting their innovative ideas into working prototypes/models". Jointly operated by the Department of Scientific & Industrial research (DSIR) and Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC) of the Department of Science & Technology (DST).

Here are some extracts from the FAQ section of the DSIR web site

# Who can apply?

Any Indian Citizen with an original idea/invention/know-how to develop working prototype/processes can apply for TePP support. Even, the proposal from the owner of a ‘start-up’ company/industry may be considered for TePP support, if the annual turnover of the company / industry doesn’t exceed Rs. 30.00 lakh per annum.

# How much support one can expect?

The maximum TePP support would be up to 90% of the project cost . The remainder part of the cost i.e. 10% amount in the project would be invested by the applicant. The upper limit for TePP support for the proposal at present is Rs. 10.00 lakh.


Here are some examples from 114 existing projects funded under this scheme:

"Everybody’s Solar Water Heater" (by a Professor at a engineering college in Tamil Nadu)

"Bullock operated generator with accessories for multi-uilisation" (by a person in Varanasi)

"Arecanut peeling machine" (from Kerala)

"100% Cure of Baldness within 40 days" (Bareilly, UP)

"Treatment of Diarrhea in Animals" (Ahmedabad, Gujarat)

Arun Natarajan is the Founder of Venture Intelligence India, which tracks venture capital activity in India and Indian-founded companies worldwide. View sample issues of Venture Intelligence India newsletters and reports.

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