StudyDesk Scholarships
About the fellowship
The Nehru Science Postdoctoral Research Fellowship was set up to find promising young researchers with innovative ideas and give them training and research opportunities in niche areas of basic science, engineering, medicine and agriculture. The fellowship is tenable at a CSIR laboratory, and CSIR intends to award around 100 such fellowships every year. It is a full-time research position, not a study scholarship: you propose a project, you are hosted by a laboratory, and you are expected to publish and present as a working researcher.
Two features of this scheme catch applicants out, so note them early. First, you cannot simply apply to CSIR directly: your application must be routed through the sponsoring CSIR laboratory, and it must carry the attestation of that laboratory’s Director — an application without it is not considered. Second, you cannot apply from the CSIR laboratory where you did your PhD. If your doctorate came from a particular CSIR laboratory, that laboratory cannot sponsor you under this scheme.
Benefits
- A consolidated fellowship of ₹80,000 a month, as given in the current Buddy4Study listing and in recent fellowship guides, plus house rent allowance as admissible.
- A contingency grant of ₹3,00,000 a year. Up to 25% of it may be used for domestic and international travel, including per diem expenses.
- A tenure of two years, extendable for a maximum of one more year on outstanding performance and on the recommendation of the Director of the host CSIR laboratory.
- Access to a CSIR laboratory’s research facilities and research community for the whole tenure.
A note on the monthly figure, because the sources genuinely disagree. The CSIR document hosted on csir.res.in still states ₹35,000 a month, the India Science, Technology & Innovation portal states ₹50,000 a month on one page and ₹65,000 on another, and the current Buddy4Study listing together with recent guides states ₹80,000. The direction of travel is clear — the rate has been revised upward more than once — but the official pages checked have not all been updated to the same figure. This article uses ₹80,000 because it is the figure in the most recent listings, and it flags the older figures here rather than hiding them. Before you plan a move around this fellowship, confirm the rate in force with CSIR-HRDG or with your sponsoring laboratory.
Who can apply
- You hold a PhD awarded within three years, or you have submitted your PhD thesis. Candidates who are about to submit a thesis are also eligible, but selection is conditional on the thesis being submitted before the award offer’s validity expires.
- You have research publications in high-impact-factor SCI journals.
- Your maximum age is 32 years. Relaxation is up to 5 years for SC/ST, physically handicapped and women candidates and 3 years for OBC non-creamy layer candidates, as stated in the Buddy4Study listing; one older official page groups OBC candidates with the 5-year relaxation, so confirm the relaxation that applies to you.
- You are an Indian national, a Person of Indian Origin (PIO) or an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI). Up to 20% of the fellowships may be offered to foreign nationals.
- You have a sponsoring CSIR laboratory willing to host you, other than the laboratory where you completed your PhD.
Documents required
No separate document checklist is published in the sources checked for this scheme, so none is invented here. What the scheme does require is specific: the application must be made in the prescribed format available from CSIR-HRDG, routed through the sponsoring CSIR laboratory, and attested by that laboratory’s Director. Keep your PhD award or thesis-submission proof, your publication list, and your proposed research project ready in the prescribed format, and confirm the current format and submission address with CSIR-HRDG before sending anything, since the contact officer named on older pages may have changed.
How to apply
- Identify a CSIR laboratory working in your area and agree a research proposal and hosting arrangement with a scientist there. Do not skip this step: the laboratory is your sponsor, not just your destination.
- Complete the application in the prescribed format available from CSIR-HRDG.
- Route the application through the sponsoring laboratory and obtain the Director’s attestation.
- Submit at any time of the year, but aim to reach CSIR about two months before a selection round if you want to be considered in that round: selections are made twice a year, usually in June and December.
- Shortlisted candidates are assessed on a presentation of the proposed research project, followed by an interview by a specially constituted committee.
FAQs
No single closing date. Applications can be submitted at any time of the year, but selections are made only in June and December, so timing your submission about two months before a round matters.
The most recent listings state ₹80,000 a month plus HRA and a ₹3,00,000 annual contingency grant. Older official pages still show ₹35,000, ₹50,000 or ₹65,000 a month, so confirm the current rate with CSIR-HRDG before applying.
Yes. Thesis-submitted candidates are eligible, and candidates about to submit may also apply, but selection is conditional on submitting the thesis before the award offer expires.
No. Candidates who worked for their PhD from a particular CSIR laboratory are not eligible to apply from that same laboratory under this scheme.
Two years, extendable for a maximum of one more year on outstanding performance and on the recommendation of the host laboratory’s Director.
Verified 30 Oct 2026 against the Buddy4Study scheme listing (CSIR-Nehru: ₹80,000 a month, ₹3,00,000 annual contingency, 25% travel, any-time applications, June/December selections, 2 years plus 1 year extension, age 32 with 5-year/3-year relaxations, Director attestation), the CSIR-hosted scheme document (eligibility, tenure, routing through a sponsoring laboratory, older ₹35,000 rate), the India Science, Technology & Innovation portal (100 fellowships a year, up to 20% foreign nationals, same-laboratory exclusion, ₹50,000/₹65,000 figures on different pages) and recent fellowship guides. The monthly-rate disagreement is carried openly in the article.
