Cabinet approves ₹1 lakh crore corpus for galvanising private investment in R&D

The Research Development and Innovation (RDI) scheme, shaped through wide consultations with industry experts, will provide long-term financing or refinancing at low or interest-free rates . It will back projects that have moved beyond early-stage research and reached the prototype stage,said union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw at a press briefing on the cabinet’s decisions.

“When a company moves beyond the prototype stage, it often faces the ‘valley of death,’ a critical phase where many innovations fail due to lack of support,” said Vaishnaw. “This is exactly when timely assistance is needed to turn a promising prototype into a viable product.”

The scheme will target sunrise sectors such as clean energy, climate tech, deep tech (quantum applications, robotics, space teach), AI in key areas, biotech, digital agriculture, and also interestingly technologies required for strategic reasons, economic security, self-reliance or public interest.