Bharat Water Innovation Network (Bharat WIN) - Open Call for Startups and MSMEs

Bharat Water Innovation Network (Bharat WIN) - Open Call for Startups and MSMEs is sponsored by Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India. This initiative aims to drive technology-led transformation in India's water sector by accelerating innovation, connecting scientific research, entrepreneurship, and grassroots initiatives.

Bharat WIN (Bhartwin) | Open Call, Innovation, Sensors, Water Quality, Mobile Apps, GIS The portal will remain unavailable from 11:00 AM to 01:00 PM on 16 July 2026 due to scheduled maintenance. We apologise for the inconvenience.

Bharat Win (Bhartwin) - Open Call & Water Innovation 📢 Important: The last date for submission of proposals under the Bharat WIN Open Call for Startups & MSMEs has been extended from 31 July 2026 to 31 August 2026 .

– Submit your proposal now Bharat Water Innovation Network (Bharat Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India aimed at driving meaningful and technology-led transformation in India's water sector.

The mission is to accelerate innovation by connecting scientific research, entrepreneurship, and grassroots initiatives to ensure accessibility, affordability, and sustainability. The initiative strengthens the research and innovation ecosystem by providing both institutional and financial support, encouraging development of technologies that can be tested, scaled, and deployed in real-world settings to solve critical water challenges.

To nurture innovation, DoWR, RD & GR, MoJS, will organize Jal Shakti Hackathons under and invite calls for proposals that inspire creative solutions in priority areas such as water resource management, wastewater treatment, water-use efficiency, climate resilience, flood management, smart monitoring systems, precision agriculture, and urban hydrology.

The National Institute of Hydrology (NIH), Roorkee , has been designated as Project Implementation Agency (PIA) for this initiative. A total of 19 winning teams from the hackathon have been awarded ₹1 lakh for the development of Proofs of Concept (PoCs). The submitted PoCs will be evaluated further, and selected proposals may be considered for Grant-in-Aid support under the Bharat WIN Initiative.

To foster innovation and transform ideas into scalable solutions, DoWR, RD & GR launched the “Open Call for Startups and MSMEs” on 01st June Startups and MSMEs are invited to submit proposals on predefined Ideas, Problem Statements, Focus Areas or otherwise. Selected high-impact proposals will receive Grant-in-Aid from DoWR, RD & GR for developing innovative solutions in the water sector.

Turn breakthrough ideas into impact with funding. Reward to Hackathon winners for developing Proof-of-Concept tackling water Dedicated funding for developing full-scale prototypes/technology Showcase your solutions to policy makers. Focus areas for submission of proposals.

Water Resources Assessment and Management Development of advanced hydrological models for flood forecasting, drought assessment, and water availability prediction using GIS and remote sensing data. Innovative treatment technologies, real-time water quality monitoring, and resource recovery from wastewater for circular economy approaches.

Climate Resilience and Adaptation Solutions to build resilience against climate variability, extreme events, and changing hydrological regimes in river basins. Water Use Efficiency and Circular Economy Data-driven water management, smart sensors, IoT networks, and decision support systems for urban and agricultural water networks.

Smart Water Grids, Internet of Things, and data-driven water (surface and ground) management approaches Smart Water Grids, Internet of Things, and data-driven water (surface and ground) management approaches Efficient Irrigation, Precision Agriculture and Rainwater Harvesting Advanced flood modeling, river basin planning, urban hydrology solutions, and glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) risk assessment.

River Basin & Flood Management, Glacial Lake Outburst Floods Advanced flood modeling, river basin planning, urban hydrology solutions, and glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) risk assessment. Hydrological modelling inclusive of Urban Hydrology Advanced flood modeling, river basin planning, urban hydrology solutions, and glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) risk assessment.

Quality of Water and related issues Advanced flood modeling, river basin planning, urban hydrology solutions, and glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) risk assessment. *Additional areas related to Applicants may formulate their problem statements by identifying water-related issues, preferably aligned with the given Focus Areas .

A few identified problem statements are provided below, which may also be used as a basis for developing new ideas. P01: Development of an application for on-the-spot assessment of Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting potential and Development of an application for estimation of rooftop runoff yield and storage requirements.

The system shall generate harvesting potential and site-specific design parameters considering rainfall statistics, sub surface details, groundwater table, roof area, and demand. P02: Development of a small-scale cost-effective and sustainable plastic waste disposal system. Development of a decentralized, low-cost system for segregation, volume reduction, and environmentally compliant processing of plastic waste.

The solution shall emphasize energy efficiency, minimal secondary emissions, and operational scalability. These systems are useful to minimise soil and water contamination. P03: Smart river water level and quality surveillance system with UAVs.

Development of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) enabled monitoring framework for acquisition of river stage and in-situ water quality parameters through image processing. The system shall integrate onboard sensors, real-time telemetry, and processing modules to derive the river water level and quality parameters.

P04: Development of a floating sensor-based system for automated recording of river water levels and quality, and its transmission. Design of a floating sensor for continuous measurement of river water levels and physicochemical parameters. The system shall enable wireless transmission/telemetry/IoT, and centralized data management.

P05: Development of a decentralized wastewater treatment system for safe disposal and reuse. Development of decentralized wastewater treatment system is for safe disposal of grey and black water. The system shall ensure compliance with the Government of India guidelines and standards.

These systems reduce significant pollution load on rivers, water bodies and groundwater. P06: Development of a portable device for the detection of chemical and bacteriological water quality Development of a portable device for rapid detection of key chemical and bacteriological water quality parameters. The device shall support sensor-based techniques with on-site data processing.

P07: Development of an early warning system for Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) and urban flooding. Development of an integrated early warning system combining remote sensing, hydrodynamic modelling, IoT and real-time data. The system shall enable predictive risk assessment, alerts/warnings, and decision support.

P08: Development of a system for assessing Water Use Efficiency (WUE) for irrigation systems, individual houses, apartments, gated communities, and industries. Development of a system for assessment of water use efficiency across irrigation, residential, and industrial sectors. The system shall integrate metering data/releases/supply, usage, and performance indicators to suggest optimized water management.

P09: Development of advanced tools and techniques for the management of water resources and safe drinking Development of advanced tools/techniques and decision-support systems for water resources management and ensuring safe drinking water. The system shall leverage modelling, IoT, AI and real-time data for generating best management scenarios. P10: Development of Energy Efficient Sludge Drying and Thickening System.

The drying of sludge and removal of moisture consumes substantial amount of power and energy. The energy efficiency can be enhanced through aeration, improving dewatering and advanced process control (SCADA etc.), improving energy recovery through biogas etc. An optimal mix of abovementioned factors with system design may be presented as a solution to the improved energy efficient system.

P11: Development of a Solution for Characterization of Sludge. Characterization of sludge is very important for deciding upon its end use. System is to be developed for complete characterization of sludge instantaneously and bringing out different metals present in it, it can help in deciding the final use of sludge.

In case complete characterization is difficult, the presence of heavy metal may be brought out by the system. P12: Development of Process for FCO Compliant Soil Conditioner from Sludge. The use of sludge as a soil conditioner to enrich the soil nutrients and help in improving the productivity is an aspirational goal.

An efficient cost effective process/technology may be developed for producing FCO Guidelines for Proposal Submission in Open Call Proposals should be submitted via portal on or before 31 August 2026 . Proposals should be innovative & relevant to the Open Call Ideas / Focus Areas / Problem Statements . Only proposals submitted in the prescribed format will be considered.

The proposal should clearly mention deliverables/outcome in the form of prototypes, scalable models and deployable field-ready solutions. Only Start-ups and MSMEs are eligible to submit proposal. An individual can submit multiple proposals in this Open Call.

To submit the proposal the details of the team are not required, such details will be sought during the submission of detailed proposal / PoC, if the proposal is selected for further evaluation. Selected proposals will be called for presentation. Winners of Hackathon will receive Rs.

1 Lakh for submitting a comprehensive Selected Open Call proposals will receive Grant-in-Aid support. Startup/MSME has to co-invest 10% (In cash) of the total budget of the project. Who Can Apply / Eligibility Criteria The following Indian Organizations/ Institutions/private sector are eligible to submit proposals.

Registered Startups and MSMEs are eligible to submit proposals under the Open Call. Registered Startups and MSMEs are eligible to submit proposals under the Open Call. Laboratories, R&D institutions and registered societies.

Academia, universities & colleges. Indian NGOs registered under relevant Society Act, non-profit-making recognized Indian Private R&D Institutions/ Organizations. Any other entities that are not covered under the above categories, including Financial assistance for proof-of-concept, pilots, and scalable hydrological innovations.

A reward of Rs. 1 lakh for developing detailed Proof-of-Concept Grant-in-aid for eligible proposals based on impact potential. Official announcement of the open call for startups & MSMEs.

June 2026 to 31 August 2026 Window for innovators to submit proposals in the identified focus areas. Results of Selected Proposals Result declaration with the list of finalized proposals to be called for detailed February 2026 to 10 February 2026 Presentation of the selected proposal at Hackathon Why am I not getting OTP? The OTP is sent on your registered email ID , not on your mobile number.

Please check your Inbox and Spam folders. If you still face issues, kindly contact us — details are available in the Contact section. Only Start-ups and Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are eligible to apply under this Open Call for Proof of Concept (PoC) proposals.

What is the language of proposal? The proposal should be in English , only. Register with your email-id and verify the OTP sent on your email.

You may login using your email and password to submit the proposal. What is the submission deadline? Submit proposals by 31 August 2026, 23:59 IST.

After the deadline, submissions are closed. What details need to be filled during proposal Applicants are required to provide organization details, team information, project objectives, methodology, expected outcomes, implementation plan, budget estimates, and supporting documents as specified in the Do I need to upload any file during proposal Yes.

Applicants are required to submit the completed proposal along with supporting documents such as registration certificates, endorsement letter, as applicable through portal . Can I edit submitted final proposal? No. Once a proposal has been submitted, applicants cannot modify or resubmit it.

Applicants are advised to carefully review all information and documents before submission. Can I edit my draft proposal before final submission? Yes, while it is in Draft.

Once you submit the proposal, it becomes read-only. Review your proposal before final submission. How do I know the status of my proposal?

Login to the portal using your registered email-ID to see the status of the proposal. How many proposals can I submit? An individual can submit multiple proposals in this Open Call.

What are the documents/proofs required to apply? Applicants must submit the completed proposal along with supporting documents such as Start-up/MSME registration certificate, endorsement letter, as specified in the What should the proposal include?

The proposal should include project objectives, methodology, expected outcomes, technology readiness level (TRL), implementation plan, budget estimates, milestones, and all supporting documents as specified in the Proposals will be evaluated by the Evaluation Committees based on relevance to focus areas, technical feasibility, innovation, impact, and scalability. Yes.

Eligible projects will be reviewed for grant-in-aid for developing prototype/technology. Use the Contact section below to reach out to us. How to see website content in regional language?

To view the website in your preferred regional language, simply change the language from the navigation bar. Select your preferred language from the dropdown to instantly translate the content. Can a multi-disciplinary team apply?

Multidisciplinary teams comprising students, faculty members, and working professionals can participate. Is there any team size,gender or role restrictions? The size of the participation team is not subject to any specific stipulation.

There are no restrictions imposed on team size, gender composition, role, or designations. A hackathon is an event where individuals or teams collaborate to solve a problem, develop ideas, or build a prototype. The Jal Shakti Hackathon will emphasize on developing prototype/technology to solve water related issues.

What is Proof-of-Concept (PoC) ? Proof of Concept (PoC) demonstrates the scientific or technical feasibility of a core idea or function. In the Jal Shakti Hackathon, the PoC at Technology Readiness Level 3 (TRL-3) is expected.

PoC at TRL-3 signifies the Experimental Proof of Concept , where basic principles are demonstrated often through lab-level testing, to show how a core technology or function works, focusing on feasibility and identifying key parameters, not building a full system. It's early, fundamental stage of proving an idea can work, typically involving small-scale experiments to validate the core concept.

For queries related to Bharat WIN, please reach out to: Hackathon Secretariat, National Institute of Hydrology Jal Vigyan Bhawan, Roorkee, District Haridwar, Uttarakhand - 247667, India. AI can make mistakes, kindly confirm the sensitive information through email.