Question 1

What is the “Prime Minister’s Fellowship for Doctoral Research”?

Accepted Answer

Prime Minister’s Fellowship for Doctoral Research scheme is a prestigious initiative of Science and Engineering Research Board, Department of Science & Technology, Government of India towards the advancement of university research engagements in line with industry requirement. The scheme encourages full time PhD scholars to pursue research in “focus areas” identified by industries as well as of national priorities.

Question 2

What is the aim of this scheme?

Accepted Answer

The aim of the scheme is to encourage and inspire promising young Indian Ph.D. researchers to pursue industry relevant research in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, Agriculture & Medicine, build industry academia partnership for advancing R&D and boost research on industrially relevant subject areas.

Question 3

What are the Key Features of the Fellowship?

Accepted Answer

In addition to attractive scholarship, the Prime Minister’s Fellowship emphasizes providing a unique and invigorating experience to selected fellows. It ensures the best national and international exposure for them and provides mentoring through industry and academic experts through the mechanism of annual review meetings. In addition, periodic mentorship sessions are also organized with the help of expert external agencies.

Question 4

Which is the implementing agency of this scheme?

Accepted Answer

Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) on behalf of SERB implement the scheme.

Question 5

What are the eligibility criteria for applying/availing the Fellowship?

Accepted Answer

The applicant should be a full-time PhD scholar in any recognized Indian university/institute/research laboratory. The scholar’s PhD registration date should not be more than 14 months from the date of submission of application. The applicant should have a valid industry partner who should be ready to support the research project financially as well as provide guidance and mentorship. The mutually agreed topic of research, between the applicant and the supporting company, should be innovative, have practical relevance, and have industrial application. The selected applicant should be willing to work with/in the supporting company as and when required during the project period. The applicant should not draw any other fellowship after the selection.

Question 6

What are the areas covered under this Fellowship?

Accepted Answer

Science, Technology, Engineering, Agriculture, and Medicine

Question 7

What is the nature of support for the Fellow?

Accepted Answer

Under this scheme, fulltime PhD scholars get double the JRF/SRF fellowship amount, as scholarship.

Question 8

What are the Selection Parameters of the projects under the scheme?

Accepted Answer

The projects should be innovative and of high scientific merit; with discrete R&D as opposed to exploratory investigation. The proposed research project should have a high commercialization potential. The applicant, the academic guide, and the industry mentor should have a strong track record.

Question 9

How can an applicant apply for this fellowship?

Accepted Answer

The applicant can apply for this fellowship through the website www.primeministerfellowshipscheme.in.

Question 10

How does the online application work?

Accepted Answer

Candidates need to refer to Annexure I in the Call for Proposal document which is available on the home page of the portal www.primeministerfellowshipscheme.in. All the required documents and details needed to be given should be collected before filling the online application.

Question 11

What is the timeline till which the application can be submitted? Will an additional hard copy, stamped / signed of the application required to be sent to CII?

Accepted Answer

The scheme is open-ended and the scholars can apply anytime during the year subject to the condition that the doctoral fellow should be admitted to a full-time PhD in the last 14 months from the date of submission of application in any recognized Indian university/institute/research laboratory. In case of a different admission/enrollment and registration date, the first date of admission in full-time PhD will be considered. In case of any dispute regarding the submission date, the decision of the Apex Council will be considered as final. No hard copies of any kind need to be sent to CII; only soft copies are required to be uploaded as indicated in the form.

Question 12

Can I apply if I do not have an industry partner? Will CII help in finding one?

Accepted Answer

Applications without industry partners will not be accepted by the online system. Candidates have to find industry partners on their own. CII facilitates match-making between research scholars and industry through the portal www.primeministerfellowshipscheme.in. All those who want to search for industry partners are requested to register themselves on this portal. Registration on this portal, however, will not guarantee that the candidate will find an industry partner. The relevance of their project for industry and the extent to which the candidate is able to convey their capability to the industry will determine whether they will find industry partners or not. The interested companies can evaluate the profile and contact the applicants if they find the proposal relevant.

Question 13

How can I find relevant industry partners?

Accepted Answer

Candidates should talk to their research guides at the institute and find out about the relevant companies in that field. They can do their own research in and around them to find out the right companies and approach them. Candidates should also keep themselves abreast with the latest technologies, trends and companies working in their field. They should try to interact with industry people in their field as frequently as possible to trigger idea thrashing about a particular project.

Question 14

If an applicant submits the form, can it be submitted again?

Accepted Answer

Candidates can review and re-review their forms any number of times before uploading them finally. Once uploaded, however, the form cannot be submitted again.

Question 15

If I apply this year and am not able to get the scholarship this time, will I be allowed to apply next year?

Accepted Answer

Yes, you can apply as a fresh candidate with updated information, provided you satisfy all the eligibility conditions.

Question 16

Will applicants get automated response to submission? Will somebody call from CII to confirm the receipt of application?

Accepted Answer

Applicants will get an automatic response at the submission of applications. They will not receive any calls from CII. In case you do not receive a system generated email regarding the submission of their application within 24 hours, the applicant must contact CII at pm.scheme@cii.in

Question 17

Which are the institutes where PM Fellows are doing their research?

Accepted Answer

Following are some of the institutes where PM Fellows are pursuing their PhD: Acharya Nagarjuna University, Academy of Scientific & Innovative Research, Alagappa University, Amity University, Anna University, Banaras Hindu University, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Hemchandracharya North Gujarat University, Institute of Chemical Technology, Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology, Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology, Indian Institute of Science, Indian Institutes of Technology, IIT Bombay - Monash University Research Academy, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Manipal University, National Chemical Laboratory, National Institutes of Technology, PSG College, Punjab Agricultural University, Saurashtra University, Savitribai Phule Pune University, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Tata Memorial Hospital, Thiagarajar College of Engineering and Kurukshetra University.

Level	Central
Scheme type	Central Sector Scheme
Category	Education & Learning, Science, IT & Communications
Beneficiaries	Individual
Benefit type	Composite
Application mode	Online

Prime Minister’s Fellowship for Doctoral Research(PMFDR)

About PMFDR

Provider

Ministry Of Science And Technology

Key details

Important dates

Eligibility criteria

Award & benefits

Documents required

How to apply

Official links

PMFDR – FAQ

The applicant should be Indian.
The applicant should be a full-time PhD scholar in any recognized Indian university/institute/research laboratory.
The scholar’s PhD registration date should not be more than 14 months from the date of submission of application i.e. the applicant should apply within 14 months of PhD admission/registration whichever date is earlier.
The applicant should have a valid industry partner who should be ready to support the research project financially as well as provide guidance and mentorship.
The mutually agreed topic of research, between the applicant and the supporting company, should be innovative, have practical relevance, and have industrial application.
The selected applicant should be willing to work with/in the supporting company as and when required during the project period.
The applicant should not draw any other fellowship after the selection.