What happened (Parliament question on INSPIRE progress)

The Ministry of Science & Technology (Department of Science and Technology) provided a written reply in the Rajya Sabha by Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, Dr. Jitendra Singh. The reply reports component-wise progress of the Innovation in Science Pursuit for Inspired Research (INSPIRE) Programme across five financial years: 2021-22 through 2025-26, and describes interventions to expand outreach and inclusivity.

INSPIRE Programme design: four components across the talent pipeline

INSPIRE Programme nurtures scientific talent across the academic and research pipeline through four major components: INSPIRE MANAK supports students aged 10-17 years (Classes VI-XII) by promoting innovation and scientific creativity through student-led original ideas and innovations. INSPIRE Scholarship for Higher Education (SHE) supports meritorious students aged 17-22 years pursuing undergraduate and postgraduate studies in natural and basic sciences through scholarships. INSPIRE Fellowship supports outstanding graduates and INSPIRE scholars to pursue full-time Ph.D. programmes through financial support for up to five years. INSPIRE Faculty Fellowship supports outstanding postdoctoral researchers, generally in the 27-32 years age group (with applicable age relaxations for reserved categories), through a five-year fellowship.

Progress reported for 2021-22 to 2025-26 (component-wise counts)

The Parliament reply provides the number of students and young researchers supported under each INSPIRE component across the last five financial years: INSPIRE-MANAK: 52,720 (2021-22), 43,381 (2022-23), 46,926 (2023-24), 50,009 (2024-25), 49,805 (2025-26) INSPIRE-SHE: 18,039 (2021-22), 19,771 (2022-23), 18,236 (2023-24), 20,354 (2024-25), 24,276 (2025-26) INSPIRE Fellowship: 2,768 (2021-22), 2,872 (2022-23), 2,811 (2023-24), 2,448 (2024-25), 3,364 (2025-26) INSPIRE Faculty Fellowship: 474 (2021-22), 338 (2022-23), 299 (2023-24), 225 (2024-25), 477 (2025-26)

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