Call for Proposals: Submissions open for Climate Resilient Agriculture (India)
Deadline: 28-Sep-2025
The Ignite Life Science Foundation is issuing a call for proposals to address the national priority of
making Indian agriculture globally competitive and resilient through novel and innovative strategies
and solutions.
The five areas of focus are: Integrated Climate Resilience Breeding; Sustainable Soil, Water, and
Carbon Management for Climate Mitigation; Research based Climate-Adaptive Mechanization and
Precision Agriculture – Tools, Techniques, Apps and Digital Advisory Systems; Agro-ecology and
Diversified Farming Systems for Nutrition and Resilience; and Predicting, Preventing, and Managing
Climate-Induced Pest and Disease Outbreaks.
Climate change presents a significant challenge to India’s agricultural sector, with erratic weather
patterns and new pest and disease profiles. The problems are compounded by the decline in soil,
water, and air quality. This call for proposals seeks to bridge the gap between discovery research and
translational research by fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and engaging all stakeholders from
the start of the project. The process is a multi-phase exercise, starting with an initial Letter of Interest
(LoI). Up to two winning proposals will be selected for support.
The project has a duration of three years, with a possible two-year extension upon review. The
funding is up to Rs. 1 Crore per year. The proposals should demonstrate multidisciplinary and inter-
institutional collaboration, with clear objectives, deliverables, and a stated impact. The LoI must
include a research program outline, a statement on the group’s expertise, and an impact assessment
across social, environmental, health, and economic dimensions.
Scientists or teams of scientists who can bring in other specialties and expertise for interdisciplinary
work are eligible to apply. This includes interdisciplinary and multi-institutional consortia from any
combination of academic institutions, public research bodies, and private entities. This includes
Central, State, Private, and Deemed Universities, National Institutes, ICRISAT, State Agricultural
Universities (SAUs), Public-funded research organizations and labs, and Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs).
Rural Innovation Centres and Incubators, Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs), Farmer Producer
Organizations (FPOs), and NGOs working in sustainable agriculture, natural farming, and climate
resilience are also eligible. Municipal bodies engaged in urban agriculture and nutrition, agri-tech
and climate-tech innovators, startups, and SMEs can also apply.
For the Letter of Intent (LoI), a team must include several key components. You must also provide
clear evidence of pre-submission consortium discussions for the work packages and how they will be
integrated. The names and contact information of all involved Principal Investigators (PIs) and the
research organizations must be provided, clearly indicating the primary applicant, secondary
applicants, and collaborators. The Proposed Research Programme section, which has a 1,000-word
limit, must outline the research question, hypothesis, a brief methodology, the proposal’s novelty, its
deliverables, and its importance for Indian agriculture. Additionally, the expertise of the group must
be detailed in a separate section of 200 words. The impact of the proposed work on social,
environmental, health, farmer/agri-centric, and economic dimensions must also be described, with
each dimension having a 250-word limit.
For more information, visit Ignite Life Science Foundation.
