CBSE has released a notification on Establishment of the School Innovation Council (SIC) and Funding Support for Patents through KAPILA Program. Read for more details!
About the Notification
The Ministry of Education’s Innovation Cell has launched two significant initiatives—the School Innovation Council (SIC) and the Kalam Program for IP Literacy and Awareness (KAPILA)—to cultivate a culture of creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship among school students and educators.
School Innovation Council (SIC)
The School Innovation Council (SIC) is a pioneering initiative designed to instill a spirit of ideation, design thinking, entrepreneurship, and intellectual property (IP) commercialization in schools. This program aims to nurture and guide young minds by supporting their bright ideas, facilitating prototyping, and providing funding for patent filing, technology development, and startups.
The School Innovation Contest, a key component of SIC, encourages students to submit their innovative ideas, which, if selected, receive financial assistance for further development. Schools can now register for SIC at this link to actively engage in innovation activities.
So far, over 25,000 teachers have completed the School Innovation Ambassador Program, and more than 5,100 schools have joined SIC, demonstrating a growing interest in fostering a robust innovation ecosystem in school education.
KAPILA Program
Recognizing the importance of Intellectual Property (IP) in shaping future innovators, the Kalam Program for IP Literacy and Awareness (KAPILA) for Schools was launched on 4th September 2024. This program aims to raise awareness among students and teachers about the significance of IP filing, the processes involved, and the benefits of protecting their innovations.
Through KAPILA, financial assistance is provided to schools for filing patents, covering 1000 patent filing and examination fees. Additionally, students and teachers who have filed patents for their ideas after 1st April 2023 can avail full reimbursement on the patent filing fee (₹1,600) and examination fee (₹4,000). Schools may apply for up to five patent fee reimbursements per academic year.
For more details, visit KAPILA for Schools.
Encouraging Schools to Integrate SIC in Curricula
To create a sustainable culture of innovation, CBSE schools are encouraged to establish School Innovation Councils (SICs) as a co-curricular activity for students from Classes VI to XII. Schools that have previously registered for SIC should log in and carry out innovation activities for the 2025-26 academic year as per the SIC Activity Calendar.
Contact Information
For any queries related to SIC and KAPILA, schools can contact:
- Dr. Elangovan Kariappan, Assistant Innovation Director, Ministry of Education’s Innovation Cell
- Email: schoolinnovation@aicte-india.org / kapilasic@aicte-india.org
- Phone: +91 9289090268
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