Schaeffler Social Innovator Fellowship 2026 — ₹2L Grant, 8-Month Cohort — Frequently Asked Questions

Each selected fellow receives a ₹2L grant. It is catalytic and non-repayable, designed to speed up how quickly the venture's solution is developed and deployed. Alongside the money, fellows get the eight-month structured journey, which includes residential learning modules, expert mentorship and business advisory, investor readiness support, strategic introductions, a peer learning community, corporate ecosystem access, national visibility, incubation support, and legal and IP support.

No. The financial support comes as a grant rather than an investment — it is non-repayable, so you are not handing over a stake in your venture. You use the ₹2L to build and deploy your solution while keeping ownership of the company.

The fellowship is open to early-stage social ventures that have gone past the idea stage. Your venture should have a working MVP or an already validated solution, evidence of validation from early customers or beneficiaries, and some traction such as pilots or partnerships. You also need a committed founding team, scope to scale, and the ability to show measurable social impact.

No. Social innovators from anywhere in India can apply. That said, one of the programme's explicit objectives is to bring in more founders from Tier II cities, Tier III cities and rural areas, so applicants from those regions are strongly encouraged to put their ventures forward.

The programme is built around solutions to critical development challenges. Its focus areas include healthcare, agriculture, education, sanitation and WASH, clean energy, livelihoods, manufacturing safety, mobility, environment and sustainability, social innovation, and AI and robotics.

The fellowship supports 10 high-potential social innovators per cohort, drawn from diverse regions across India. Those ten ventures are the ones that clear the screening, multi-stage evaluation and expert jury assessment.

It runs for eight months. The journey is organised in three phases: outreach and selection, the fellowship journey itself, and post-fellowship engagement. During the fellowship, participants attend residential learning modules for intensive capacity building and receive one-on-one mentorship, with continued monitoring and alumni engagement after the cohort wraps up.

There is a multi-stage process. Applications are first screened for eligibility and alignment with the fellowship's objectives. Shortlisted ventures then go through a detailed evaluation covering the significance of the problem, the innovation and uniqueness of the solution, product-market fit, market readiness, go-to-market strategy, the founding team's capability and commitment, traction and validation, scalability, and anticipated measurable social impact. Finalists present to an expert jury, which leads to the selection of the top 10 fellows.

Applications close on 31 August 2026. Submissions are made online through the India Accelerator platform at https://www.indiaaccelerator.co/schaeffler-social-innovator-fellowship/apply/. Applications reach the programme through a national call, with outreach running across incubators, universities, NGOs and ecosystem partners.

Quite a lot. Fellows take part in an eight-month structured journey that includes residential learning modules, one-on-one expert mentorship and business advisory aligned to their venture, investor readiness support, strategic network introductions, and a peer learning community of fellow social innovators. They also gain corporate ecosystem access and national visibility, along with incubation support and legal and IP support.

No. DPIIT (Startup India) recognition is not listed as a mandatory requirement for Schaeffler Social Innovator Fellowship 2026 — ₹2L Grant, 8-Month Cohort, though having it can strengthen your application and unlock other benefits.

Schaeffler Social Innovator Fellowship 2026 — ₹2L Grant, 8-Month Cohort is offered by India Accelerator, a startup accelerator. It is provided as non-dilutive funding.