Government to roll out Rs 1 lakh crore RDI fund by December end

The Department of Science and Technology (DST) is aiming to operationalise the Rs 1 lakh crore Research Development and Innovation (RDI) scheme by December 2025, with plans to mobilise private sector investment in critical and sunrise technologies, including 6G, space, quantum, and biotechnology.

Approved by the Union Cabinet on 1 July 2025, the RDI scheme will operate through a Special Purpose Fund (SPF) embedded within the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF). The SPF will act as the custodian of funds and allocate capital to multiple second-level fund managers, including alternate investment funds, development finance institutions, and focused research organisations.

Discussing the RDI roll-out plan with CyberMedia, DST Secretary Dr Abhay Karandikar stated that the government is working on a tight schedule. “The implementation framework, investment guidelines and liberalised financial rules are expected to be finalised by August–September, and we aim to make the fund operational by December.” He added that by early 2026, the country should see the first round of investments taking shape.

The Secretary informed that accountability measures for the RDI scheme will be baked in from the outset. “We are defining outcome metrics at both the fund and project levels. These include breakthrough patents, successful product commercialisation, and market impact,” he said.

RDI Governance and Disbursal Framework

The governing board of the ANRF, chaired by the Prime Minister, will provide overall strategic direction to the scheme. The executive council of ANRF will be responsible for approving operational guidelines and recommending second-level fund managers and project categories. Oversight will be provided by an Empowered Group of Secretaries, chaired by the Cabinet Secretary, which will review performance and approve changes to sectors, fund managers, and scheme mechanisms. DST will serve as the nodal department.

A key rationale behind the two-tiered structure is to maintain the government’s distance from specific project-level investment decisions. “We want to avoid retail investment decisions. Second-level fund managers, selected through a transparent process, will take those calls within the broad sectoral and technological frameworks we define,” Dr Karandikar explained.

Sharing details about the plans for selecting second-level fund managers, Dr Karandikar informed that the DST plans to publish guidelines for selecting fund managers by September 2025 and initiate the empanelment process soon after. “We will have a transparent process for selecting second-level fund managers. The guidelines are almost final,” he said.

Eligibility Benchmarks and TRL Standards

The funding for projects will primarily be through long-term, low or zero-interest loans. Equity investments may also be considered, particularly in cases involving deep tech start-ups. Contributions to deep-tech-focused Fund of Funds structures may also be enabled under the scheme.

Dr Karandikar stressed that only high-end innovation would be eligible. “The fund will not support routine corporate R&D or non-deep-tech start-ups. Projects must be in cutting-edge domains and at a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of 4 or above,” he said.

TRL 4 indicates that a technology has progressed beyond theoretical exploration and has undergone basic validation in a laboratory environment. At this stage, individual technological components are integrated and tested as a system to confirm their combined functionality. It serves as a transition point from proof of concept (established at TRL 3) toward engineering development, offering early evidence that projected performance targets may be feasible.

Initially developed by NASA, the TRL framework includes nine levels to track maturity from ideation (TRL 1) to market readiness (TRL 9). The RDI scheme uses TRL 4 as a baseline to ensure that only technologies that have progressed beyond conceptual modelling and are ready for deeper engineering and demonstration are eligible for funding.

The fund also includes a provision to support technology acquisition from global sources, if strategically necessary. While the focus is on Indian entities, foreign-origin technologies may be eligible for support if acquired by Indian companies or start-ups. Key sunrise sectors identified include clean energy, space, defence, quantum technologies, biotechnology, synthetic biology, robotics, and pharmaceuticals.

Catalysing India’s Deep-Tech Ambitions

Dr Karandikar underlined the RDI scheme’s role in positioning India as a developer of next-generation technologies across a broad spectrum of strategic and digital domains. “If India wants to shape the future of global technologies, we must move from being adopters to originators. The RDI scheme is designed to enable that shift,” he said.

The scheme will support R&D in sectors such as quantum computing, artificial intelligence, telecom, robotics, clean energy, synthetic biology, advanced materials, pharmaceuticals, and space. “This is about building strategic autonomy and global competitiveness in technologies that will define the future economy,” he added.

With India’s gross expenditure on R&D hovering around 0.7% of GDP—70% of which comes from the government—the RDI scheme aims to reverse the trend. “The private sector has shied away from R&D due to long gestation and high risk. We hope this fund, by taking on the initial risk, will catalyse more private investment,” Dr Karandikar said.

“We want our companies to lead—to create foundational IP, contribute to international standards, and commercialise core technologies across deep-tech sectors,” he said. In the case of 5G, India’s contributions were largely driven by academia. With the RDI scheme, the private sector is expected to take a more central role in shaping future standards and technologies.

He also urged the private sector to act with urgency. “The government is creating the framework and support. It is now up to industry and innovators to step forward and deliver breakthrough technologies.”