Kurukshetra 2.0 Hackfest — ₹1L+ Prize Pool for College Students

Kurukshetra 2.0 is a national-level hackathon that brings together college students from across India for a 24-hour offline coding marathon. Organised by MIT Arts, Commerce & Science College, Alandi, Pune, the event is designed to spark innovation and teamwork in fields like AI/ML, Web 3.0, cloud computing, and automation. Participants work in teams to build working prototypes and solve real-world problems, all while connecting with a wider community of developers and tech enthusiasts.

The hackathon runs over 24 hours on 11–12 September 2026 at the MIT Arts, Commerce & Science College campus in Pune. There are no prior elimination rounds — every registered team competes directly at the event. Problem statements are revealed at the start, so teams must be ready to brainstorm and build on the spot.

Kurukshetra 2.0 is the flagship hackathon of MIT Arts, Commerce & Science College, an established educational institution in Maharashtra known for hosting technical and cultural events. The event encourages hands-on learning and industry collaboration, making it a valuable platform for students to showcase their skills and potentially secure internships.

• 24-hour offline hackathon in Pune on 11–12 September 2026
• Open to all college students in India; teams of 1–4
• Prize pool of ₹1,00,000+ across 12 winners
• First-place in each domain gets a paid internship
• Four themes: AI/ML, Cyber Security, Blockchain, Open Innovation
• No elimination rounds — all registered teams compete

The hackathon is open to all college students across India, regardless of their field of study or year. Teams can be formed with 1 to 4 members — a solo participant, a duo, or a group of 3–4. There are no restrictions on the number of teams from the same college, and no prior selection rounds; registered teams directly participate.

Kurukshetra 2.0 Hackfest — ₹1L+ Prize Pool for College Students is open to startups at any stage. It is open to startups registered anywhere in India.

Applications for Kurukshetra 2.0 Hackfest — ₹1L+ Prize Pool for College Students are open and the current deadline is 20 Aug 2026. Applications are closing soon, so prepare your documents early. Deadlines can change — always reconfirm on the official source before submitting.

A total prize pool of ₹1,00,000+ is distributed among the 12 winning teams — three winners from each of the four domains. Additionally, the first-place team in each domain receives a paid internship opportunity. No further breakdown of cash prizes by rank is provided.

Registration is a two-step process. First, interested participants must register on Unstop via the official event link. Second, after registering on Unstop, teams must complete their team registration and payment through a Google Form, which is accessible via the event's Link Tree. The payment amount depends on team size: solo teams pay ₹300, duos pay ₹500, and teams of 3–4 members pay ₹1,000. A screenshot of the successful payment must be attached to the Google Form. The registration deadline is 20 August 2026.

Before you apply to Kurukshetra 2.0 Hackfest — ₹1L+ Prize Pool for College Students, keep the following documents ready:

• A pitch deck or short business plan describing the problem, product and traction
• Company registration documents and PAN
• Founder identification (PAN / Aadhaar) and brief profiles
• Recent financial statements or projections
• Product details — a demo, prototype or working link if available

Exact requirements are confirmed on the official application portal — treat this as a preparation checklist.

Kurukshetra 2.0 Hackfest — ₹1L+ Prize Pool for College Students is best suited for startups in India seeking non-dilutive funding of ₹1L. If that describes your startup, review the eligibility criteria above before applying.