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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5385
ANSWERED ON 25/03/2026
TECHNOLOGY SUPPORT TO PERAMBALUR AND TIRUCHIRAPPALLI
5385. THIRU ARUN NEHRU:
Will the Minister of SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY be pleased to state:
(a) the details of projects, grants and incubation/innovation
programmes supported by DST, DBT, CSIR etc. in Perambalur and
Tiruchirappalli districts during the last five years;
(b) the number of institutions, start-ups and students benefited; and
(c) whether any district-level science centre, tinkering labs or
innovation hubs are proposed in this region?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE
MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND EARTH SCIENCES
(DR. JITENDRA SINGH)
(a) to (b): Department of Science and Technology (DST), Department of
Biotechnology (DBT), and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research
(CSIR) implement a range of national-level schemes and programmes to
promote and strengthen research and development (R&D), innovation,
incubation and technology development across the country, including in
the districts of Perambalur and Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu. The details
of various programmes under which benefits have been availed in
Perambalur and Tiruchirappalli districts during the last five years are as
follows:
Through the DST – Fund for Improvement of S&T Infrastructure (FIST)
programme, 4 projects in 3 academic institutions in Tiruchirappalli district
have been supported.
Under the DST – National Initiative for Developing and Harnessing
Innovations (NIDHI) programme, start-ups are supported from ideation to
commercialization through components such as EIR, PRAYAS, Seed Fund
and Technology Business Incubators (TBIs). During the last five years, 14
Page 1 of 3startups/innovators from the Tiruchirappalli–Perambalur region have been
supported with financial assistance of about ₹1.56 crore. DST has also
supported a Science and Technology Entrepreneurs Park (STEP) at NIT
Tiruchirappalli which has further been supported by Atal Incubation
Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog with scale-up grant of Rs. 8.66 crore.
Through the DST’s INSPIRE Scheme, including INSPIRE-MANAK (Million
Minds Augmenting National Aspiration and Knowledge), Scholarship for
Higher Education (SHE), INSPIRE Fellowship, and INSPIRE Faculty
Fellowship, 475 students and researchers from Perambalur and
Tiruchirappalli districts have been supported with fellowship grants
amounting to about Rs. 1.74 crore during the last five years.
Under the Technology Development Programme (TDP) of DST, R&D projects
have been supported to develop indigenous technologies and translate
proof-of-concepts into prototypes in areas such as agro-technology and
sensors/devices. During the last five years, a total of Rs. 0.93 crore has
been sanctioned to 2 academic institutions located in Perambalur and
Tiruchirappalli districts. Also, under Advanced Manufacturing
Technologies program one project in Tiruchirappalli district has been
sanctioned with a total cost of Rs. 0.45 crore. Under the Climate, Energy
and Sustainable Technology (CEST) initiatives of DST, 6 projects in 2
institutions have been supported in the region.
Through various schemes/programmes of ANRF-DST such as Core
Research Grant, Empowerment and Equity Opportunities for Excellence in
Science, Inclusivity Research Grant, National Post Doctoral Fellowship (N-
PDF), National Science Chair, Prime Minister Early Career Research Grant,
Ramanujan Fellowship, Start-up Research Grant, Teachers Associateship
for Research Excellence (TARE) etc, a total of 88 projects/institutions have
been supported with a total funding of about Rs. 25.98 crore during the last
five years and the current year in Tiruchirappalli district. The Science and
Heritage Research Initiative (SHRI) Cell of DST has also supported two
projects in Tiruchirappalli district during the last five years.
Under the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) programmes, namely
Biotechnology Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development
(Bio-RIDE), Biotechnology Ignition Grant (BIG), and Sustainable
Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Development (SEED) Fund, a total of 12
projects/startups have been supported in various institutes in
Page 2 of 3Tiruchirappalli district during the last five years, with a sanctioned cost of
about Rs. 6.34 crore.
The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), under its
constituent laboratory Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI), Chennai
has undertaken 2 projects in Tiruchirappalli. The students from Perambalur
and Tiruchirappalli region were also benefitted by the CSIR Jigyasa 2.0
program conducted by CSIR-Central Electrochemical Research Institute
(CECRI), Karaikudi. About 126 students have been part of the program.
Also, through the CSIR Integrated Skill Development Program a total
number of 130 students have been benefitted. Two companies and 16
trainees from Perambalur and Tiruchirappalli region have been benefitted
through the Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI), Chennai training
programmes.
(c) The Government is committed to strengthening the science,
technology, and innovation ecosystem across the country, including in the
districts of Perambalur and Tiruchirapalli. As per the proposal received, the
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has established a Space
Technology Incubation Centre (S-TIC) at the National Institute of
Technology (NIT), Tiruchirapalli, to promote start-ups, encourage
entrepreneurship among students, and foster an academia-industry
ecosystem in the space technology domain.
Under the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) of NITI Aayog, a total of 27 Atal
Tinkering Labs (ATLs) in Tiruchirapalli district and 6 ATLs in Perambalur
district have been established in schools to enhance the innovation
ecosystem at the school level.
The Department of Science and Technology (DST) has supported the
establishment of a Science and Technology Entrepreneurs Park (STEP) at
NIT Tiruchirapalli, and under it’s National Mission on Interdisciplinary
Cyber-Physical Systems, a Technology Innovation Hub on Sensors,
Networking, Actuators, and Control Systems (SNACS) has been established
at Indian Institute of technology, Madras. These hubs are strengthening
innovation, incubation, translational research and entrepreneurship
development in the region.
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