CSIR Innovation Award for School Children [CIASC]

1. It may be recalled that in year 2001-02 (Diamond Jubilee Year), on the World Intellectual
Day i.e. April 26, CSIR announced first time 'CSIR Diamond Jubilee Invention Award for
School Children'. The aim of this initiative has been spearheading the intellectual Property
Movement in India.
2. CSIR has been spearheading the Intellectual Property Movement in India. Its own
performance as the highest patent filer in the country for the past 40 years and more
recently its forays in foreign patent filings are creditable. While these are well known to
policy makers and parliamentarians, these achievements are not so well known to the lay
public and school children. The Parliamentarians and the Prime Minister have time and
again exhorted CSIR to -take a more leading role in spearheading patent literacy among
the common people. April 26 every year is being observed as the World Intellectual
Property Day - it marks the establishment of World Intellectual Property Organization
(WIPO). This day provides us a good occasion to make known CSIR's achievements in
the IPR domain widely and also to create some interest in IP by the lay public.
Accordingly, it is submitted that on this day, CSIR announce a CSIR Diamond Jubilee
Award for Invention of School Children.
3. This activity was continued in the subsequent year’s uptill year 2013. The Scheme was
renamed as 'CSIR Innovation Award for School Children (CIASC) in year 2011 having
objectives as follows:
i. To capture creativity and innovativeness amongst children;
ii. Create interest and awareness for IP amongst children; and
iii. Make known CSIR's contribution to IPR.
4. CSIR has revived the “Innovation Award for School Children” in 2016, after a gap of three
years. The revival resulted into tremendous success as students across the country have
participated in the competition and Hon’ble President and Hon’ble Prime Minister
appreciated the prize winner’s on CSIR foundation day functions.
5. As per the process in place, the Competition needs to be announced through
advertisement in National and local Newspapers across the country in month of January.
Details of the award application will also be publicized on the website of CSIR, CSIR labs,
Kendriya Vidyalaya, NVS and CBSE.
6. The eligible inventions for consideration should be novel, nonobvious and utilitarian for
any new concept or idea or a solution to an existing problem or completely a new
method/device/utility. It would not be essential / necessary that the invention should have
been worked; only the concept of the invention should have been proved through a
 model, a prototype or an experimental data. Thus, some of these inventions could be a
'feeder' to the programme of DSIR & NIF of DST for further development and support.
7. Any Indian school going student upto Class XII and below 18 years of age as or 31st
January of current year would be eligible to apply through the Principal/Head of the
School (for authentication purposes). The applications received by offiline / online would
be duly recorded, kept confidential and prima facie screened by the IPU, CSIR , to weed
out the frivolous and obvious ones (perpetual motion, etc.). The remaining ones would be
categorized in four groups — Biotechnology, Chemical, Electronics & Engineering and
Others for each of which a five member Specialist Committee be constituted by DG CSIR
to shortlist the promising/potential inventions. The shortlisted applications from the four
areas would be subjected to international patent search and examination and placed for
consideration of a High Level Awards Selection Committee (constituted by the DG, CSIR)
for the recommendation of the Awardees. The Awards would be announced on the CSIR
Foundation Day and appropriately presented. The awardees would be assisted to protect
their inventions and develop them further appropriately through and diverse, extant
means/ mechanisms/ schemes.
8. These shortlisted students will be provided training cum awareness related to IPR by the
Innovation Protection unit (IPU) of CSIR. Student may be accompanied by teachers
during training programme to be held at Delhi or NCR. During the training programme
student would be imparted knowledge on Intellectual property rights including the
concepts and would be trained to write patent applications/design applications. These
pre-requisite i.e. screening/shortlisting of received proposals followed by training
at IPU will enhance the quality of the competition.
9. Since the basic purpose of the Award is to create a widespread awareness amongst
school children, hence the prize money is kept at a modest level but to have large number
of prizes. The prizes 15 in number as follows:
First Prize (1 Nos.) Rs. 1,00,000/-
Second Prize (2 Nos.) Rs. 50,000/- each
Third Prize (3 Nos.) Rs. 30,000/- each
Fourth Prize (4 Nos.) Rs. 20,000/- each
Fifth Prize (5.) Rs. 10,000/- each

It is not mandatory that all the above 15 prizes for the award would be given.
Since the Award would be open to all Indian school children, it would be desirable to
popularize it in all national languages. A self-contained advertisement issued in daily
newspapers/popular science magazines in different languages, website of CSIR, CSIR
 labs, Kendriya Vidyalaya, NVS and CBSE. Besides diverse school authorities would be
sent posters on the awards.

During the last sixteen years, i.e. from 2002 to 2020, 11,533 proposals were received for
these Awards from various parts of the country and 136 inventions/innovations were
selected for various prizes by High Level Awards Selection Committee.

YEAR NO.OF AWARDS GIVEN

APPLICATIONS
IST IIND IIIRD IVTH VTH TOTAL
RECEIVED
PRIZE PRIZE PRIZE PRIZE PRIZE

2002 570 1 2 3 3 5 14

2003 383 - 1 2 2 3 08

2004 442 - 1 1 2 3 07

2005 335 - 1 1 1 1 04

2006 268 - - 2 1 3 06

2007 223 - - 1 - 1 02

2008 362 - 1 1 - 3 05

2009 288 - 1 - - - 01

2010 353 - - - 1 1 02

TOTAL 3324 1 7 11 10 20 49

Year Total no of Awards given

nd rd th
application Ist 2 3 4 5th Total
received
2011 370 11* award given in Sep 2012
2012 487 NIL 01 01 01 03 06* award given in Sep 2013
2013 537 NIL 02 02 03 02 09* award given in Sep 2014
2014 NIL
2015
2016 377 NIL 2 3 4 5 14 award given in Sep 2016
2017 450 1 1 2 NIL NIL 04 award given in Sep 2017
2018 983 1 2 3 4 3 13 award given in Sep 2018
2019 653 1 2 3 4 1 11 award given in Sep 2019
2020 4352 - 2 3 4 2 11 award given in Sep 2020

In the year 2016-2020 the competition has been renewed with an intervening training cum
awareness programme. In year 2020, CSIR received 4352 innovation proposals which
were screened. Total eleven innovation proposals selected for award. The award
comprises a cash prize, trophy and a certificate. The following 16 children awarded for
their 11 innovations contain total two2nd prizes, three3rd prizes, four fourth prizes and two
fifth prizes:-

Draft of the Scheme is enclosed.

 CSIR INNOVATION AWARD FOR SCHOOL CHILDREN (CIASC)
1. MOTIVATION
Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) is the premier Industrial R&D
Organization in India. Innovation Award to create awareness, interest and motivation
for Intellectual Property for school children has been instituted to support scientific
temperament and to generate innovative spirit among school children.
2. AWARD
CIASC (CSIR Innovation Award for School Children) award was initiated in the year
2002 on the occasion of the World Intellectual Property Day which is celebrated
throughout the world on 26th April, CIASC (CSIR Innovation Award for School
Children) is an annual national competition to harness the creative and innovative
spirit of school children. CSIR invites students to send their original creative
technological and design ideas in the form of proposal for the competition.
3.SCOPE
The proposals invited for the awards are for exploration of ideas and for providing
the feasibility or possibility of the concept on intellectual property rights. Winning
entries are selected on the basis of the novelty and utility for any new concept or
idea or design or a solution to an existing problem or a completely new
method/device/utility.
4. PROPOSAL
The proposals submitted should be one that is novel and utilitarian. It could be a new
concept or idea or design or a solution to an existing problem or completely a new
method/ process/ device/ utility. The concept of the innovation should have been
proved through a model, a prototype or experimental data. It is encouraged that the
focus of students on innovation is through 'design ideas'. However, innovations
related to other topics would equally be eligible. Essays mere compilation of
information from published literature downloaded from internet will not be
considered. Details of any assistance/ guidance provided by
teachers/parents/friends or others must be appropriately acknowledged.
Applicant must submit the details of the innovation proposals by hard copy in
English/Hindi (not more than 5000 words), along with a authentication certificate
(having seal and date) issued by the Principal / Head of the School where the
student is enrolled.
Proposals must have title of the Innovation, name and date of birth of the candidate,
school and residential address, class, telephone no. (residence /school) and e-mail
address.
5. SELECTION
The proposal for CIASC award 2020 should relate to innovations developed
published exhibited during the period from January 1, 2019 to 31st December, 2019
for consideration for the award. The applications for the award not exceeding 5000
words in English/Hindi with requisite drawings/photographs will be considered. The
write-up must describe the subject matter in a problem-solution mode, highlighting
the novel features of the innovation and its advantages. The awardees will be
selected by a high level Award Selection Committee. The decision of the Award
Selection Committee / CSIR will be final and binding on the applicants and no enquiries /
correspondence in this regard will be entertained. Award would be announced on or before
26th September.
These shortlisted students will be provided training cum awareness related to IPR by
the Innovation Protection unit (IPU) of CSIR. Applicants or student may be accompanied
by teachers during training programme to be held at Delhi or NCR. During the training
programme student would be imparted knowledge on Intellectual property rights
including the concepts and would be trained to write patent applications/design applications.
Thereafter these students will be asked to submit the patent applications/design applications
for seeking the award. The cost of travel and stay at Delhi or NCR will be borne by CSIR.

These pre-requisite i.e. screening/shortlisting of received proposals followed by

training at IPU will enhance the quality of the competition.

6. CRITERIA FOR APPLICANT AND APPLICATION

Any Indian school going student up to Class XII and below 18 years of age as on
31st January 2020 would be eligible to apply in English or Hindi through the
Principal/Head of the School (for authentication purposes). Proposals can be
submitted by a student or a group of students. However, a single award will be given
to group of students.
The proposal(s) would be categorized in groups such as Biotechnology, Biology,
Chemistry, Electronics & Engineering/device and design. However design based
applications is encouraged. The eligible innovations for consideration should be
novel and utilitarian for any new concept or idea or design or a solution to an
existing problem or completely a new method/device/utility. The concept of the
innovation should have been proved through a model, a prototype or an
experimental data.
Proposal already awarded by any Central/State government, Ministry/
Department/ Organization need not to be sent for this scheme.
7Number of Prizes and Cash award prizes
There are in all 15 prizes. Besides a certificate, the cash awards are:
First Prize (1 Nos.) Rs. 1,00,000/-
Second Prize (2 Nos.) Rs. 50,000/- each
Third Prize (3 Nos.) Rs. 30,000/- each
Fourth Prize (4 Nos.) Rs. 20,000/- each
Fifth Prize (5.) Rs. 10,000/- each
It is not mandatory that all the above 15 prizes for the award would be given.
8. WHOM TO SEND
Applications should be submitted by hard copy through Registered Post/Courier to:
Head, CSIR-Innovation Protection Unit, NISCAIR Building, 14 Satsang Vihar Marg,
Special Institutional Area, New Delhi - 110 067 with the envelope marked on top left
hand corner 'CIASC-2020”.
It may please be noted that a hard copy of all applications should be submitted
through post with authentication letter (with seal and date) from the School
Principal on the innovation claims being made.
9. DEADLINE
Online proposal must reach CSIR –IPU before 30th April, 2021. Applications received
on or before 30th April, 2021 will be considered for the Award.
10. ANNOUNCEMENT OF AWARD
The Award will be announced on or before 26th September, 2021, at New Delhi and
would be communicated to the Awardees only. The awards will be given to winners
on CSIR Foundation Day i.e. 26th September, 2021. The cost of travel and stay at
New Delhi will be borne by CSIR.
 Template for CSIR INNOVATION AWARD FOR SCHOOL CHILDREN (CIASC)
Name of the Award CSIR INNOVATION AWARD FOR SCHOOL CHILDREN [CIASC]

Year, Authority and Instituted in 2002 by Innovation Protection Unit, Council of scientific and Industrial
purpose of the Research, New Delhi to create awareness, interest and motivation towards
Award Intellectual Property for school children and support their scientific temperament and
to generate innovative spirit among school children.
Nodal Govt. Council of scientific and Industrial Research, Ministry of Science and Technology,
Agency New Delhi
Award details Plaque
Certificate signed by Director General, Council of scientific and Industrial Research
Cash awards upto Rs. 1,00,000/-
Eligibility Any Indian school going student up to Class XII and below 18 years of age as on
31st January of current year.
Number and There are in all 15 prizes.
categories of First Prize (1 Nos.) Rs. 1,00,000/-
Awards Second Prize (2 Nos.) Rs. 50,000/- each
Third Prize (3 Nos.) Rs. 30,000/- each
Fourth Prize (4 Nos.) Rs. 20,000/- each
Fifth Prize (5.) Rs. 10,000/- each
It is not mandatory that all the above 15 prizes for the award would be given.
Nomination Nominations are invited [offline and online mode] in first week of January each
Process year from school children for their two to three best original
innovations/Designs/ Scientific ideas in any Hindi/English language by through
the Principal/Head of the School (for authentication purposes). Nominations for the
award not exceeding 5000 words in English/Hindi with requisite
drawings/photographs. The write-up must describe the subject matter in a
problem-solution mode, highlighting the novel features of the innovation and its
advantages.

Selection Process All nominations received for CSIR INNOVATION AWARD FOR SCHOOL
CHILDREN [CIASC] are placed before the two tier screening committees for its
consideration.

First committee comprises Scientists from different scientific backgrounds approved

by DG, CSIR. Comprises two official members and four to six eminent persons
[Scientists] nominated by D.G., CSIR

Second High level selection committee comprises two official members and four to

six eminent persons [Scientists] nominated by D.G., CSIR

The name of the students recommended by High level selection committee are

submitted to the DG, CSIR for approval.
Timelines ❖ Nomination invited:- First week of January

❖ Deadline for nominations: 30th March

❖ Announcement of Awards:- First week of September

❖ Conferred by hon’ble Minister of science and Technology in the ceremony held
at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi on occasion of CSIR Foundation Day i.e. 26th
September, 2020.