India, a mighty global economy which will soon be crowned the youngest nation in the world faces multiple daunting challenges in terms of energy/physical/cyber security, potable water scarcity, environment and climate change, poverty, affordable health care for billions, etc. A vast majority of these tasks demand engineering intervention and technological innovation. A clarion call was made by the Honourable President and Prime Minister to address all engineering and technological challenges faced by the nation through a nation-wide unique initiative called IMPacting Research INnovation and Technology (IMPRINT) launched on November 5, 2015 from the Rashtrapati Bhavan. IMPRINT India was a multi-stakeholder mission programme aimed at bridging the gap between scientific knowledgebase created through fundamental and applied research and fruitful translation of the same through engineering invention and technological innovation for the betterment of our society. Conceived as a participatory effort between researchers and innovators from academic institutions under the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) along with stake holders from concerned Ministries and industry, IMPRINT was envisaged to bolster challenge driven innovation and translation of knowledge into viable technology (products and processes). The entire gamut of activities was divided into ten identified domains namely, Advanced Materials (AM), Energy (EN), Environment &Climate change (EC), Healthcare (HC), Information &Communication Technology (IT), Manufacturing (MT), Nanotechnology hardware (NT), Security &Defence (SD), Sustainable Habitat (SH) and Water &River Systems (WR). Each domain was convened by one of the IITs or IISc with IIT Kanpur as the overall national coordinator. IMPRINT was unique not just because the President and PM blessed its launch, but because for the first time,

• The entire, all not a specific one or two engineering challenges were targeted,
• All higher education institutes (HEIs) including centrally funded technical institutes (CFTIs) were roped in for active involvement,
• 27 Ministry and Department of Government of India signed MoU with MHRD to actively participate and share 50% of the project budget, and above all,
• The focus was not on research for knowledge creation but for its translation to develop new technology for national progress and societal good.

IMPRINT created an unprecedented enthusiasm among the researchers from academia. From the 2612 preliminary proposals received against the national call for proposal submission, only 259 were selected for funding by the Apex Committee in October 2016 after three rounds of extremely rigorous scrutiny by over 500 reviewers from across the country. Eventually 142 proposals are under way since March 2017 with 50% funding from MHRD and the remaining 50% from one of the MoU signatory Ministry/Department. A large number of R&D institutions and industry is involved in IMPRINT as Co-PI or partners. The first review of the progress of the on-going projects was conducted during Aug 25-27, 2018 at IIT Delhi followed by a national Technology Exhibition (TechEx) on October 4, 2019 at IIT Delhi, inaugurated by Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, the Honorable Human Resource Minister to showcase the major outcome (products, prototypes, field trial results, etc.) of IMPRINT I.

IMPRINT-India initiative was both novel and unique. Despite unprecedented interest, wide spread enthusiasm and unique scope and utility of the initiative, a need was felt to sharpen the focus, streamline the process of review and allotment, and simplify the procedure and mechanism of funding. Thus, IMPRINT has now graduated into the next edition, IMPRINT II, with wider scope, simpler guideline for participation and better synergy among investigators, partners and collaborators. It is also realised and appreciated that IMPRINT IIshould be more inclusive by expanding the catchment of implementing institutions, by adopting a more demand-driven strategy for evolving solutions and by incorporating the specific externalities of the states of India so as to make translation and adaptation of technology easier for the end users. SERB (Science and Engineering Research Board) in the Department of Science & Technology (DST) is the nodal agency for implementing the IMPRINT II initiative working along with the National Coordinator. The SERB created a separate vertical under its overall set up with allocated resources and a time bound action plan for selection, funding and management of research projects under IMPRINT. Secretary (HE) and Secretary (DST) are the Co-chairpersons of the Apex Committee, while the National Coordinator of IMPRINT and Secretary of SERB are the Co-chairs of the Steering Committee of this vertical. The Expert Pool of Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE) is being extensively used to constitute the Programme Advisory Committee (PAC) for each Domain and blind peer review of the proposals and knowledge management of the outcome of IMPRINT. In order to improve connectivity with the end-users, IMPRINT II has attempted to bring on board the stakeholder ministries right from the conceptualisation stage so as to nurture a participative ecosystem of project formulation, maturation, execution and delivery. Further integration of the programme for achieving national development and our commitment to global goals is proposed through sub-programmes covering states of India and partnership with the sustainable development goals (SDGs). Specific focus is proposed to be given to collate, analyse and document all the communications and consultations during Round-I and those proposed in Round-II in order to come up with the policy document and roadmap to research in engineering sciences within the next couple of years. The Uchhatar Avishkar Yojana (UAY) scheme will be subsumed within IMPRINT II and no further call for proposal submission under UAY would be issued.

IMPRINT IIA (on-going)

A national call for submission of preliminary proposals were made from interested researchers in March 2017. Out of 2145 preliminary proposals submitted, only 122 full proposals were selected through a two-stage peer review process involving 10 domain specific Program Advisory Committees (PACs) and the Steering Committee. The selected projects are now ready to get started.

IMPRINT IIB (on-going)

The Steering Committee of IMPRINT has decided to select a few more promising projects from the basket of proposals received under IMPRINT IIA without diluting the quality of peer review. A few such deserving proposals will be selected under this category and be approved and executed as an extension of the just concluded IMPRINT IIA, as, IMPRINT IIB.

Eligibility criteria applied

Principal Investigator (PI): The main applicant or the Principal Investigator (PI) should be an Indian citizen. The PI must hold a regular academic/research position (Faculty member or Scientist or Scientific Officer) of Centrally Funded Technical Institution (CFTI), MHRD funded Central University (CU) or MHRD funded Higher Education Institution (HEI) engaged in research and development (R&D) in engineering and technology (E&T), having at least 4 years of regular service left before superannuation as on date of submission of the proposal. Only one PI is allowed for a given project. Scientists selected for project funding under IMPRINT IIA and IMPRINT IIB are not eligible to apply for funding under IMPRINT IIC as the PI.
The term "Regular" in the context of IMPRINT II refers to the applicants who are appointed against the sanctioned or tenured post that are likely to be continued for at least another 4 years.
[Note: Research Associates, Ad-hoc faculties, Guest Faculty, Visiting Scientist, consultant, Project Fellows and Faculty members whose contract is renewed every year are not eligible.] (In cases where it is not covered by any of the above, SERB has the right to determine the eligibility)

The following points will be given priority during the project evaluation:

• Projects which address any of the 20 'themes' falling under the 10 Technology Domains and 'topics' thereof.
• Projects which qualify as translational research initiatives leading to viable technology, prototype or working model development.
• Projects with industry participation or start-up company involvement that may lead to developing commercially viable products and thereby creating jobs.
• At least 25% of the project cost should be supported by the Industry out of which at least 10 % of the project cost should be in cash.

Role of PI: PI will lead the team of investigators, liaise with funding agency/ministry, receive funds through the designated office and mechanism of his/her host Institution, be obliged to submit technical reports, statement of expenditure (S/E) and utilization certificate (U/C) as per IMPRINT II norms, and ensure adherence/compliance to the usual rules and regulations of his/her host Institution in terms of purchase, travel, recruitment, publication, academic and related ethical norms including intellectual property right (IPR), etc. PI may share or transfer funds with Co-PI or partner (not collaborator) as per the project proposal and norms of his/her host institute, but will be responsible to collect all the necessary data/information and submit the technical report, statement of expenditure (S/E) and utilization certificate (U/C) for the project on behalf of the team. The PI must take the responsibility of entering into a separate formal agreement (memorandum of understanding/agreement) with all non-MHRD partner institutes or organizations with the approval of his/her competent authority about modalities of collaboration, sharing of fund/facility/intellectual property (IP) and obligation to meet the objectives and deliverables of the project.

Co-PI: Any regular employee (faculty, staff, scientist, engineer) of CFTIs, CUs or HEIs (Indian national) belonging to any relevant area of science & Technology from any Government of India or State Government funded/ approved Institution, University, Deemed University, and/or R&D organization can be a Co-PI. In addition, members of a public/private sector industry (Indian national) is also eligible to be a Co-PI. One project may have multiple Co-PI. . It is mandatory that (a) there should be at least one Co-PI from the PI's Institute, and (b) there should be at least one co-PI at each of the participating Institute where fund from IMPRINT II project is proposed to be transferred.

Role of Co-PI: Co-PI will assist and cooperate with the PI, as stipulated in the project proposal for the success of the project. His/her institute may receive part of the funding as per the requirement of the project through the Institution of the PI and help the PI submit the technical report, S/E and U/C.

Partner: Any faculty/staff member, scientist, engineer or regular employee of a Government/private funded institution/organization in India may be a partner in projects funded under IMPRINT II.

Role of Partner: Partner(s) (individuals) will assist PI and Co-PI to realize the stated objectives of the project by offering technical assistance (project formulation, testing, characterization, trial, report writing, etc.), may get a share of the funding as per project requirement through the Institution of the PI (as per rules) and be a co-author in report, publication, patent and technology development as per the mutual agreement and provision of the project (PI to decide/declare beforehand).

Collaborator: Any faculty/staff member, scientist, engineer or employee of a Government/private funded institution/organization in India or abroad may be a collaborator in projects funded under IMPRINT II.

Role of Collaborator: Collaborator(s) (individuals) may contribute to the success of the project as deemed fit by the PI/Co-PI and stated in the project proposal (say, by offering technical help, testing/characterization, consultation, advice, etc.), may feature in publication/report if PI desires but not enjoy direct funding from the project.

A new/modified consortium approach is proposed in the IMPRINT IIC Programme to include strong and complementary expertise from across different disciplines and organizations within India to address major technological challenges for breakthrough in selected areas of societal/industrial importance. The Programme challenges the scientists to establish an effective, functional and synergistic consortium and drive all those partners to align to the pre-determined theme/topic for preparation of project proposal and its submission. It is expected that the consortium upholds Inter-disciplinarity that ensures synergy from diverse sources of knowledge and competence and create unprecedented complementarity that can enable formation of the strongest expert group in the country for the chosen theme/challenge and forging a unique strategic partnership for collective and national benefit. It is imperative that the team must select a PI and pledge to work under him/her.

A moderate investment to the tune of Rs. 20-30 crore per consortium is planned with Industrial contribution not less than 25% of which 10% should be by Cash. SERB has announced the themes ( View list )and challenge the scientific community to undertake such opportunities not only to prove their worth but also to make the nation proud of their scientific and technological exploit. The lead institute should also illustrate a sustainability plan in the proposal beyond the approved duration for long-term impact of the consortium and eventual realization of the desired product up to commercialization.

There should be at least two Institutes/Universities and two Industries involved in the Consortia

It is required to specify the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of the proposal with suitable evidence and justification at the time of applying and also should specify the target TRL to reach.

The University/Institute will develop a sustainability plan and incorporate it into the proposal and run the Consortium for at least another five (5) years after the completion of project tenure (SERB support) towards for long-term impact of the consortium.

It is decided that all IMPRINT IIC.2 proposals must make an attempt to identify and involve industry partners or potential user group/agency who would offer financial support of maximum up to 50% of the budget and undertake field trial of the prototype developed by the concerned project. At least 25% of the overall project cost should be supported by the Industry out of which at least 10 % of the project cost should be in cash. Industry will transfer the cash component to the partner academic institutes and partner institutes will maintain the separate account of it.

Support in kind and cash can be under following suggested heads (with suitable justification): research personnel, consumable, equipment/facility utilization and running charges, field trial/deployment charges, etc. No consultancy charges to the PI/Co-PIs should be considered neither in cash or nor in-kind component.

Eligibility- Who can apply

Principal Investigator (PI): The main applicant or the Principal Investigator (PI) should be an Indian citizen. The PI must hold a regular academic or research position (Faculty member or Scientist or Scientific Officer) of a Centrally Funded Technical Institution (CFTI), MHRD funded Central University (CU) or MHRD funded Higher Education Institution (HEI) engaged in research and development (R&D) in engineering and technology (E&T), having at least 6 years of regular service left before superannuation as on date of submission of the proposal. Only one PI is allowed for a given project.

Co-Principal Investigator (co-PI): The main applicant from other Institute or the co-Principal Investigator (co-PI) where fund is proposed to be transferred, should be an Indian citizen. He/she must hold a regular academic or research position (Faculty member or Scientist or Scientific Officer) of a Centrally Funded Technical Institution (CFTI), MHRD funded Central University (CU), MHRD funded Higher Education Institution (HEI) engaged in research and development (R&D) in engineering and technology (E&T) or any other Central/State Government academic/research Institute having at least 6 years of regular service left before superannuation as on date of submission of the proposal.

Co-Investigator (co-I):Any regular employee (faculty, staff, scientist, engineer) of CFTIs, CUs or HEIs (Indian national) belonging to any relevant area of science & technology from any Government of India or State Government funded/approved Institution, University, Deemed University, and/or R&D organization can be a Co-I. In addition, members of a public/private sector industry (Indian national) is also eligible to be a Co-I. One project may have multiple Co-I.

It is mandatory that there should be at least one Co-PI and a Co-I in each of the participating Institute where fund is proposed to be transferred.

PIs of the projects selected for funding under IMPRINT IIA , IMPRINT IIB and IMPRINT-IIC.1 are not eligible to apply for funding under IMPRINT IIC.2 as the PI
The term "Regular" in the context of IMPRINT II refers to the applicants who are appointed against the sanctioned or tenured post that are likely to be continued for at least another 6 years.
[Note: Research Associates, Ad-hoc faculties, Guest Faculty, Visiting Scientist, consultant, Project Fellows and Faculty members whose contract is renewed every year are not eligible.] (In cases where it is not covered by any of the above, SERB has the right to determine the eligibility)

There should be at least two Institutes/Universities and two Industries involved in the Consortia.

It is mandatory that there should be at least one Co-Investigator in addition to the Co-Principal investigator(s) (i.e., at least two persons) at each of the participating Institute where fund is proposed to be transferred.

The following points will be given priority during the project evaluation :

• Projects which address any of the 20 'themes' falling under the 10 Technology Domains and 'topics' thereof.
• Projects which qualify as translational research initiatives leading to viable technology, prototype or working model development.
• Projects with industry participation or start-up company involvement that may lead to developing commercially viable products and thereby creating jobs.
• At least 25% of the project cost should be supported by the Industry out of which at least 10 % of the project cost should be in cash.

Role of PI: PI will lead the team of investigators, liaise with funding agency/ministry, receive funds through the designated office and mechanism of his/her host Institution, be obliged to submit technical reports, statement of expenditure (S/E) and utilization certificate (U/C) as per IMPRINT II norms, and ensure adherence/compliance to the usual rules and regulations of his/her host Institution in terms of purchase, travel, recruitment, publication, academic and related ethical norms including intellectual property right (IPR), etc. PI may share or transfer funds with Co-PI or partner (not collaborator) as per the project proposal and norms of his/her host institute, but will be responsible to collect all the necessary data/information and submit the technical report, S/E and U/C for the project on behalf of the team.
The PI must take the responsibility of entering into a separate formal agreement (memorandum of understanding/agreement) with all non-MHRD partner institutes or organizations with the approval of his/her competent authority about modalities of collaboration, sharing of fund/facility/intellectual property (IP) and obligation to meet the objectives and deliverables of the project.

Role of co-PI:Co-PI will lead the team of investigators of his/her Institute and also liaise with funding agency/ministry, receive funds through the designated office and mechanism of his/her host Institution, be obliged to submit technical reports, statement of expenditure (S/E) and utilization certificate (U/C) as per IMPRINT II norms, and ensure adherence/compliance to the usual rules and regulations of his/her host Institution in terms of purchase, travel, recruitment, publication, academic and related ethical norms including intellectual property right (IPR), etc. Co-PI may share or transfer funds with other co-PI or partner (not collaborator) as per the project proposal and norms of his/her host institute, but will be responsible to collect all the necessary data/information and submit the technical report, S/E and U/C for the project on behalf of the team..
Co-Investigator (Co-I): Any regular employee (faculty, staff, scientist, engineer) of CFTIs, CUs or HEIs (Indian national) belonging to any relevant area of science & Technology from any Government of India or State Government funded/ approved Institution, University, Deemed University, and/or R&D organization can be a Co-PI. In addition, members of a public/ private sector industry (Indian national) is also eligible to be a Co-I. One project may have multiple co-I. It is mandatory that there should be at least one co-Investigator (two investigators) at each of the participating Institute where fund is proposed.

Role of Co-Invesigator: Co-I will assist and cooperate with the PI and Co-PI, as stipulated in the project proposal for the success of the project. His/her institute may receive part of the funding as per the requirement of the project through the Institution of the PI/Co-PI and help them to submit the technical report, S/E and U/C.

Partner: Any faculty/staff member, scientist, engineer or regular employee of a Government/private funded institution/organization in India may be a partner in projects funded under IMPRINT II.

Role of Partner: Partner(s) (individuals) will assist PI and Co-PI to realize the stated objectives of the project by offering technical assistance (project formulation, testing, characterization, trial, report writing, etc.), may get a share of the funding as per project requirement through the Institution of the PI (as per rules) and be a co-author in report, publication, patent and technology development as per the mutual agreement and provision of the project (PI to decide/declare beforehand).

Collaborator: Any faculty/staff member, scientist, engineer or employee of a Government/private funded institution/organization in India or abroad may be a collaborator in projects funded under IMPRINT II.

Role of Collaborator: Collaborator(s) (individuals) may contribute to the success of the project as deemed fit by the PI/Co-PI and stated in the project proposal (say, by offering technical help, testing/characterization, consultation, advice, etc.), may feature in publication/report if PI desires but not enjoy direct funding from the project.