Abhay Karandikar, Secretary , Department of Science and Technology(DST
The Department of Science and Technology(DST) will open applications for Second Level Fund Managers(SLFM) for the Union Government’s R&D fund from January 12, according to Abhay Karandikar, Secretary at DST.
SLFMs are financial intermediaries, such as Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs), Development Finance Institutions (DFIs), NBFCs, and specialised Research Organisations (FROs), through which the central RDI Fund channels funds to invest directly in private companies. RDIF does not fund companies directly, but via SLFMs.
In a post on X, Karandikar said that following the release of the Implementation Guidelines (IG) and Notice Inviting Applications (NIA) for SLFM in October, the department conducted extensive outreach activities across multiple cities and forums to engage closely with stakeholders.
Agency approvals underway
He added that the SLFM approvals for government agencies, such as the Technology Development Board and the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC), are currently in process and are expected to be completed by the end of January. Both agencies will begin processing applications from industries and startups in the first week of February 2026, he said.
The last date for SLFMs to submit applications will be January 31, 2026.
The Research, Development and Innovation Fund (RDIF), approved by the Union Cabinet in July of last year, aims to catalyse private-sector investment in R&D, with a total outlay of ₹1 lakh crore over six years, including ₹20,000 crore in FY 2025-26. The fund was launched with a goal of providing capital support for ‘high-risk, high-impact projects’ and strengthening India’s innovation ecosystem.
Priority technology sectors
Some of the priority sectors of this Fund are energy security and transition, climate action, quantum computing, robotics and space. It also seeks to support Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its application to Indian problems, including in agriculture, health and education. Technologies whose indigenisation is important for strategic reasons or for economic security are also a focus area.
Deep tech push
Vishesh Rajaram, Managing Partner, Speciale Invest, said that the RDI Fund is a timely and necessary intervention to strengthen India’s deep-tech ecosystem. “While early research and seed capital have improved significantly, there remains a clear missing growth capital stack for deep-tech companies transitioning from proven technology to commercial scale. where many globally competitive Indian deep-tech startups face friction,” he said.
He added that Speciale Invest believes that structured capital at Series A and beyond is critical to building deep tech institutions, and their Growth Fund II was launched to bridge this gap. The VC firm intends to apply under the RDI Fund.
The RDIF, in its implementation guidelines, lays down two investment streams to fund SLFMs: by way of contributions to AIFs and Loan Financing.
Published on January 5, 2026
