On Friday, April 17, 2026, Pusa Krishi, ICAR-IARI, launched its Grant-in-Aid Programs – UPJA (Seed) and ARISE (Pre-seed) for the year 2026–27 under the RKVY-RAFTAAR initiative, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare. These programs are designed to nurture innovation in agriculture and allied sectors by equipping aspiring agripreneurs with the resources, guidance and ecosystem needed to build scalable ventures.
UPJA
UPJA is a focused agribusiness incubation program aimed at strengthening India’s agri-startup ecosystem. It supports startups that have progressed beyond the prototype stage and have products ready for market deployment. The program offers technology validation, mentoring, pilot opportunities, go-to-market support and industry linkages to help startups scale effectively.
Startups can avail funding support of up to ₹25 lakhs under this program.
ARISE
ARISE is a pre-seed incubation program crafted for budding agripreneurs at the idea or early stage. It provides a strong foundation through mentorship, industry exposure, business and technologyvalidation and expert advisory support. The program aims to nurture ideas into impactful and viable agri-solutions. Selected startups can receive funding support of up to ₹5 lakhs.
Student Orientation Program
Students with entrepreneurial aspirations can get up to ₹4 lakhs in funding, along with mentorship and exposure to develop and validate their ideas.
Eligibility
Applicants must:
- Be an Indian citizen
- Have an idea or innovation
- Program specific conditions are given on our official website – pusakrishi.in
Registration Link: https://pusakrishi.accubate.app/ext/form/23446/1/apply
Important Dates
- Registration starts on 17th April 2026
- Closes on 17th May 2026
For more details, contact – 9873561100, 8700183709