Terms of participation

Eligibility

You must be 18 or older. You must be an Indian citizen, or your startup must be registered in India. Startups must have been incorporated within the last 7 years and must not have raised more than ₹3 crore in institutional equity.

Your track is determined by your answers

The track you enter is derived from your eligibility answers, not chosen by you. If you have a registered company you enter the startup track. This prevents a funded company from paying the lower student fee.

Accuracy

You are responsible for the accuracy of what you declare. If verification finds that a declaration was false, participation may be ended without refund, and any grant awarded on the basis of a false declaration is recoverable.

Scoring and the jury

Scoring is on the published 100-point rubric. Three jurors score independently. The jury's decision is final. Ties are broken on traction, then business model, then who applied first. Your full scorecard, including per-criterion scores and juror comments, is released to you after results.

Intellectual property

You keep every right in your idea, your product and your materials. We claim no licence over them beyond what is needed to run the review, and we publish nothing without the consent you gave at registration.

Conduct

Harassment of staff, mentors, jurors or other participants ends participation without refund.

Governing law

These terms are governed by Indian law.

Last updated 25 Jul 2026. Questions: trust@bharatstartupgrant.org