FOSS4GOV Innovation Challenge: BIG OPPORTUNITY! Know eligibility, cash prize and other details

The Ministry of Electronics and IT has launched 'The FOSS4GOV Innovation Challenge' which aims to accelerate adoption of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) in Government and build Indian FOSS Ecosystem.

Through this challenge, the government is inviting innovators, start-ups, working professionals, academics and students in India to showcase their existing FOSS based innovations and/or build new, implementable, open source product innovations in Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) with possible applications for Govtech in Health, Education, Agriculture, Urban Governance etc.

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The FOSS4GOV Innovation Challenge' is an opportunity for participants to pitch ideas to experts and receive mentorship to develop and fine-tune solutions. The winners of the Challenge will also receive cash rewards and incubation support to scale their products.

Additionally, they will have the opportunity to get their solutions listed on the Government e Marketplace (GeM) , thus allowing a host of central and state government departments to procure them.

'The FOSS4GOV Innovation Challenge' is an opportunity for participants to pitch ideas to experts and receive mentorship to develop and fine-tune solutions. The winners of the Challenge will also receive cash rewards and incubation support to scale their products. 2/2

— Digital India (@_DigitalIndia) July 27, 2021

"The FOSS4Gov Innovation Challenge is significant as adoption of Free and Open Source Software will bring numerous advantages for users, organisations, businesses and governments such as greater autonomy, increased scope for collaboration, no vendor lock-ins, re-use of code, reduction in monopoly, growth of ecosystem for innovation, security, and cost savings," Digital India tweeted.

Eligibility

The Challenge is open for all Indian entrepreneurs and FOSS enthusiasts including startups, students, academia, coders, IT professionals, engineers, UI/UX professionals, etc.

All applicants should:

Be Indian citizens and currently residing in India OR startups/Companies registered in India wherein majority stakeholders are Indians; and

Register either as individuals with atmost 2 supporting team members, with the team leader registering on behalf of the team.

Award Details and Recognition

The Top winning teams in each of the two categories (CRM and ERP) will receive Rs 20 Lakhs (CRM) + Rs 20 Lakhs (ERP) and the second team will receive Rs 15 Lakhs (CRM) + Rs 15 Lakhs (ERP) and the third team will receive Rs 10 Lakhs (CRM) + Rs 10 Lakhs (ERP) as funding to further develop and add features to the selected application, along with certificate from the Minister of Electronics & IT.

Omidyar network India (ONI) will provide a special prize of Rs 5 lakh in each category for best citizen centric safeguards. A chance to receive one -on- one mentorship support by experts to develop and fine-tune your FOSS solutions during the competition.

An opportunity to present your solution to an eminent jury of experts from the government, civil society, academia and the industry during the competition.

Incubation support and an opportunity to get solution(s) listed on the government platform GeM for procurement, customisation and use by departments and agencies in the centre and in the states, for the winners.

Those who are interested can click on the link https://innovateindia.mygov.in/foss4gov-innovation-challenge/ for more details.