OpenResearch Grant

Special Call for Proposals for Establishment of ICMR Centre for Advanced Research (CAR) for the Development of Priority Medical Devices and Diagnostic Technologies

Funded by:

Indian Council of Medical ResearchMedical Device and Diagnostic Mission Secretariat

Grant Amount

INR: 150,000,000Total Budget Limit

Deadline

Jul 15, 2026

47 days remaining

Funding Purpose

Applied ResearchPrototype Development

Subjects

EngineeringMedicine

Description

Special Call for Proposals for Establishment of ICMR Centre for Advanced Research (CAR) for the Development of Priority Medical Devices and Diagnostic Technologies supports the rapid development of regulatory-compliant indigenous medical device and diagnostic technologies of national importance.

Overview

The initiative aims to establish a robust national network of Centres for Advanced Research among selected applicants from the top 25 premier institutions designated by the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) 2025. These CARs will focus on developing priority medical devices and diagnostic technologies that address unmet clinical needs, thereby strengthening India’s MedTech ecosystem. The goal is to promote the development of affordable, accessible, and indigenous healthcare technologies of national public health relevance.

Research Areas or Activities

The scope requires applicants to select and propose the development of at least 8 to 10 technologies, which must be a mixed bag of low-risk and high-risk technologies, drawn from the ICMR-curated list of approximately 100 priority unmet clinical need based medical device/diagnostic technologies (detailed in Annexure-I).

Eligibility

This call is strictly restricted to investigators from the nation’s top 25 premier institutions as designated by the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) 2025, under the Overall Category (Annexure II). Eligible applicants must be regular faculty members of engineering and technological institutions possessing a distinguished and verifiable track record in advanced research, innovation, and product development. Furthermore, participating institutions must demonstrate robust capabilities in translating conceptual frameworks into tangible technologies, evidenced by a documented history of successful commercial prototyping, patent commercialization, technology transfers, or the active incubation of deep-tech startups.

Funding and Benefits

Total Budget Limit: The maximum funding available for a single CAR is ₹15 Crore for a duration of up to 5 years.
Funding Scope: Funding is restricted to product development. Grants will not be provided for new infrastructure development, although specific upgradation of existing infrastructure to meet proposed technology development needs may be permitted with appropriate justification.
Post-Funding Expectation: The host institute is expected to take over the center's activities as a permanent activity after the project completion.

Application Process

A proposal for financial support must be submitted through ONLINE MODE ONLY by the Principal Investigator, who must maintain regular employment in a Top 25 Institute as per NIRF Ranking 2025 in the Overall Category (Annexure II). The proposed team should ideally consist of scientists/professionals from the Top 25 Institutes as per NIRF Ranking 2025 in the Overall Category, possessing credentials relevant to the required skills and experience. The full proposal must be submitted electronically via the ICMR e-PMS portal, adhering to ICMR Extramural guidelines. Applicants may also upload a brief Pitch Deck (MP4 format) as an annexure.