Description

Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) — First in the World Challenge Grants 2026. OFFICIALLY OPEN investigator-initiated biomedical and health technology research funding, issued on 1 October 2026. The aim is truly first-of-its-kind, high-risk/high-reward health research capable of generating a breakthrough innovation, rather than incremental research or routine service delivery. The original 8-page ICMR call, the ICMR website and public e-PMS portal were checked on 27 October 2026. This is a RESEARCH GRANT, not a general NGO capacity-building grant, commercial tender, employment vacancy or unrestricted CSR donation.

Funding stages (maximum, subject to review and stage deliverables):
• Proof of concept: up to INR 1 crore, maximum 2 years.
• Prototype development: up to INR 4 crore, maximum 3 years.
• Final product/implementation model: up to INR 8 crore, maximum 4 years.
These are conditional stage maxima, NOT a guaranteed combined INR 13 crore award. Applicants select the relevant innovation stage; future-stage support is subject to ICMR review of deliverables.

Eligible lead applicants: scientists/faculty at government medical colleges, INIs, ICMR institutes, universities and recognised research laboratories; research organisations including private institutions and NGOs registered with DSIR; Indian startups, MSMEs and industry as permitted in the original call. NGOs additionally require NGO-DARPAN registration. A proposal may be initiated by an individual or a team, but must identify one principal investigator (PI) and at least one co-PI affiliated with the PI’s institution. Institution-specific approvals, research infrastructure, ethics and budget rules must be reviewed in the original PDF. A generic NGO without biomedical research capacity or the required registrations should NOT assume eligibility.

DEADLINE: 30 November 2026 at 17:30 IST (5:30 PM). Original call released 1 October 2026; submission portal opened 7 October 2026. The issuer instructs applicants to submit ONLY through the ICMR e-PMS portal: complete PI profile, choose ‘Proposal Submission’ → ‘Apply Proposal’ → ‘First in the World Challenge, ICMR’, then submit the full required proposal. No email applications are specified. The public e-PMS portal displays a First in World (FiW) Challenge Grant category, but the authenticated final proposal workflow has not been submitted/tested by Development Chapter; status remains review_required until that final step is confirmed. ICMR warns that new institution/designation details may not be approved within 48 hours of closing; apply well in advance.

Official ICMR call page:
https://www.icmr.gov.in/post/call-for-investigator-initiated-research-proposals-for-first-in-world-challenge-grants-2026-last-date-november-30-2026-17-30-hrs
Original official 8-page PDF:
https://www.icmr.gov.in/icmrobject/uploads/Call/1790846907_call_fiw_2026.pdf
Official e-PMS application/login:
https://epms.icmr.org.in/
Official ICMR LinkedIn (institutional identity, not independent confirmation of this call’s deadline):
https://www.linkedin.com/company/icmrorganization
ISTI discovery listing (aggregator, NOT the grant issuer):
https://www.indiascienceandtechnology.gov.in/announcementsopportunity/call-investigator-initiated-research-proposals-first-world-challenge-grants-2026
Technical queries (listed in original PDF): po.epms@icmr.gov.in

Dated verification 2026-10-27 15:35 IST: Original ICMR 2026 call PDF directly verifies India eligibility, eligible DSIR-registered research NGOs and startups/MSMEs, 3 conditional stage maxima, online e-PMS application, 30 November 17:30 IST deadline. Official ICMR public LinkedIn matches the issuer. ALL 231 previous Batch 01 records across Jobs, Grants_RFP_Tenders and Training_Events were checked for ICMR / First in World / FiW / same application and source URL; no matching underlying call existed. Therefore new distinct GRT-0075 was created; no prior ID was duplicated.

Disclaimer: Development Chapter independently curates publicly accessible notices and is not ICMR or the grant-selection authority. Confirm eligibility, DSIR and NGO-DARPAN requirements, ethical approvals, funding-stage rules, application portal and any corrigendum directly with ICMR before applying. Awards and approval are not guaranteed.

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