The Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) is the statutory grant-administering body under India’s Department of Science and Technology (DST) that funds individual investigator-driven scientific and engineering research. For a research administrator or overseas academic working out how India’s national funding structures connect to their own institution, SERB is usually the specific body they need, not DST as a whole: DST is the ministry-level department, while SERB is the operational agency that actually receives applications, runs peer review, and disburses grant funds under a range of individual programs. This guide focuses on SERB’s role and, in particular, its two flagship programs for international researcher mobility: the VAJRA scheme for overseas-based faculty and researchers, and the Overseas Visiting Doctoral Fellowship (OVDF) for Indian PhD scholars completing a research stint abroad.
What Is SERB, and How Does It Relate to DST and ANRF?
SERB was established as a statutory body under the Science and Engineering Research Board Act, 2008, operating under India’s Department of Science and Technology, with a mandate to provide financial assistance to individuals, academic institutions, R&D laboratories, and other agencies engaged in scientific and engineering research. In that structure, SERB functioned as an autonomous, Act-backed grant-making agency, comparable in role to a national research council: it issues its own calls for proposals, runs its own review panels, and makes its own award decisions, distinct from DST’s broader policy and coordination functions.
A significant structural change followed the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) Act, 2023, assented to on 15 August 2023 and commenced on 1 December 2023, which established ANRF as a new statutory body and repealed the SERB Act, 2008 — formally subsuming SERB into ANRF. In current practice, the SERB name, portal (serbonline.in), and program brands (VAJRA, OVDF, Core Research Grant, and others) continue to be used as the operating identity for these schemes under the DST/ANRF structure, and SERB’s official pages now identify the organisation as operating within the Anusandhan National Research Foundation framework. Research administrators advising applicants should treat “SERB” as the correct, current program-level name to search and cite for these specific schemes, while being aware that its parent statutory framework has moved from the standalone SERB Act to the ANRF Act as of December 2023. Because this kind of institutional restructuring can affect portal URLs, application forms, and points of contact over time, always confirm current procedural details directly against serbonline.in or serb.gov.in before an application cycle.
SERB’s Grant Portfolio at a Glance
SERB’s core portfolio is built around individual investigator-driven research grants for scientists based at Indian institutions — competitive, peer-reviewed awards intended to fund a specific research project or an early-career researcher’s independent research program. Applications for SERB-administered programs are submitted through SERB’s online application portal, commonly referred to by applicants and institutions as SERB-PRISM, where an applicant registers, completes a scheme-specific application form, and routes it through the required institutional endorsement before the stated deadline.
VAJRA and OVDF sit alongside that core domestic portfolio as SERB’s dedicated international-mobility instruments. They are structured differently from a standard research grant because their applicant base is defined by cross-border movement rather than by holding a permanent position at an Indian institution: VAJRA is built specifically for scientists and academics based overseas who want a short, recurring research stint in India, while OVDF is built for Indian PhD scholars who need a defined period of research training abroad as part of a doctoral program already underway in India. A non-Indian researcher evaluating SERB opportunities should generally start with VAJRA, since most of SERB’s other individual grant programs require the applicant to already hold a regular faculty or scientist position at an Indian public-funded institution.
VAJRA: Visiting Advanced Joint Research Faculty Scheme
VAJRA (Visiting Advanced Joint Research Faculty) was announced in January 2017 and is implemented by SERB to bring overseas-based scientists and academics into short, recurring collaborative residencies at Indian public-funded academic and research institutions. It is explicitly designed to draw on the overseas Indian scientific diaspora as well as non-Indian researchers with an interest in collaborating with Indian institutions.
VAJRA Eligibility
The scheme is open to overseas scientists, faculty, and R&D professionals — including Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs), Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs), and foreign nationals — who are active researchers with a proven track record, currently affiliated with an overseas academic, research, or industrial organisation. On the Indian side, eligible host institutions are limited to public-funded academic institutions and national laboratories; a VAJRA appointment is arranged jointly between the overseas researcher and an Indian host institution and PI, rather than applied for independently of a host.
Duration and Structure
A VAJRA appointment is an adjunct faculty position, offered initially for one year and renewable annually. Within each year, the VAJRA Faculty member’s residency in India runs for a minimum of one month and a maximum of three months, meaning the arrangement is designed around recurring short visits rather than relocation.
Stipend and Support
Per SERB’s published VAJRA terms, the VAJRA Faculty member receives a lump-sum amount of US$15,000 for the first month of residency in a given year, and US$10,000 per month for each of the remaining months (up to two further months), intended to cover travel and honorarium together. Host institutions may provide additional support such as accommodation or insurance, though this is not a mandated part of the scheme itself. Because funding terms in government schemes are periodically revised, confirm the current figures against the official VAJRA notification on serbonline.in before budgeting or advising an applicant.
How to Apply
VAJRA applications are coordinated between the overseas researcher and a proposed Indian host institution, and submitted through SERB’s online portal. A host institution PI typically initiates or co-develops the proposal with the overseas researcher, since eligibility and hosting capacity both need to be demonstrated as part of the application. Research offices supporting an outbound application should confirm the current call, required documents, and any host-institution MoU requirements directly on serbonline.in, since these details are updated periodically.
Overseas Visiting Doctoral Fellowship (OVDF)
The Overseas Visiting Doctoral Fellowship runs in the opposite direction to VAJRA: it funds Indian PhD scholars, enrolled at an Indian institution, to complete a defined research training stint at an overseas institution as part of their doctoral program.
OVDF Eligibility
OVDF operates through two application routes. In the first, an Indian PhD supervisor who has already established an individual research collaboration with a foreign counterpart applies on behalf of their doctoral student. In the second, the application proceeds under an institutional Agreement or MoU that an Indian or overseas institution has already signed with SERB specifically for student mobility. In both routes, the doctoral student must be enrolled in a PhD program in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics discipline, which SERB interprets broadly to include Medicine, Pharmacy, and Agriculture alongside the core STEM fields.
Duration
The overseas research training period runs for up to twelve months. In exceptional cases, and subject to performance evaluation, it may be extended by up to six further months, for a maximum total of eighteen months; no extension is granted beyond that ceiling. SERB does not generally entertain fellowships of less than six months, though shorter periods may be considered in exceptional circumstances.
How to Apply
As with VAJRA, OVDF applications are submitted through SERB’s online portal, with the Indian PhD supervisor (or the partner institution, under an existing MoU route) coordinating the application on the student’s behalf. Because eligibility depends on either a pre-existing personal research collaboration or an institutional MoU already being in place, an Indian doctoral student interested in OVDF should raise it with their supervisor and institutional research office well before a target departure date, rather than after identifying an overseas host independently.
VAJRA vs. OVDF: How the Two Programs Differ
| Dimension | VAJRA | OVDF |
|---|---|---|
| Who applies | Overseas-based scientists, faculty, R&D professionals (NRI/PIO/OCI or foreign nationals) | Indian PhD scholars enrolled at an Indian institution |
| Direction of travel | Into India, to a public-funded host institution | Out of India, to an overseas host institution |
| Structure | Recurring short residencies (1–3 months/year) under a renewable 1-year adjunct appointment | A single continuous research training stint, up to 12 months (extendable to 18 in exceptional cases) |
| Funding form | Lump-sum monthly amount covering travel and honorarium | Fellowship/support for a defined training period, per the current SERB notification |
| Entry route | Joint proposal with an Indian public-funded host institution | Via supervisor’s individual collaboration, or an institutional MoU with SERB |
Why This Matters for Research Administrators
For a research administration office outside India, VAJRA is the more relevant of the two programs to track: it is one of a relatively small number of mechanisms through which a faculty member or senior researcher can hold a formally recognised, funded adjunct position at an Indian public institution without relocating, which can matter for visiting scholar agreement negotiations, outbound collaboration planning, or advising diaspora faculty on India-facing opportunities. OVDF, by contrast, is primarily relevant to institutions receiving an Indian doctoral student for a defined stint under an existing supervisor collaboration or MoU — useful context when a host lab or graduate school is asked to accommodate a visiting PhD researcher on this specific funding basis rather than as a self-funded or institutionally-funded visitor. In both cases, because SERB’s schemes sit downstream of the 2023 ANRF restructuring, the safest practice for administrators is to verify the current program name, portal, and terms directly against serb.gov.in or serbonline.in each time a new applicant raises the program, rather than relying on institutional memory from a prior cycle.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is eligible for the VAJRA scheme?
Overseas-based scientists, faculty, and R&D professionals with a proven research track record and a current affiliation with an overseas academic, research, or industrial organisation — including NRIs, PIOs, OCIs, and foreign nationals. The Indian host must be a public-funded academic institution or national laboratory.
What is the VAJRA stipend or honorarium?
Per SERB’s published terms, VAJRA Faculty receive a lump-sum of US$15,000 for the first month of residency in a given year and US$10,000 for each subsequent month (up to two more months), covering travel and honorarium. Confirm the current figures on serbonline.in, since government scheme terms are periodically revised.
How long can a VAJRA Faculty member stay in India?
Between one and three months per year, under an adjunct appointment offered for an initial one-year term and renewable annually.
What is the Overseas Visiting Doctoral Fellowship (OVDF)?
A SERB program that funds Indian PhD scholars, already enrolled at an Indian institution, to complete a research training stint of up to twelve months (extendable to eighteen in exceptional cases) at an overseas institution, either through their supervisor’s existing research collaboration or an institutional MoU with SERB.
How is OVDF different from VAJRA?
They run in opposite directions. VAJRA brings overseas-based researchers to India for recurring short residencies; OVDF sends Indian PhD students overseas for a single, longer, continuous research training period.
Can a non-Indian researcher apply for OVDF?
No. OVDF funds Indian PhD scholars enrolled at Indian institutions to train abroad. A non-Indian researcher interested in a SERB-funded connection to India should look at VAJRA instead.
Is SERB still the correct name to use after the ANRF Act, 2023?
Yes, at the program level. The ANRF Act, 2023 repealed the original SERB Act, 2008 and folded SERB into the new Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) statutory framework, but SERB’s name, portal, and individual scheme brands (VAJRA, OVDF, and others) remain the current operating identity for these programs. Always verify procedural specifics against serb.gov.in or serbonline.in, since restructurings of this kind can shift portals and points of contact over time.
How do I apply for a SERB international researcher program?
Both VAJRA and OVDF applications are submitted through SERB’s online application portal (serbonline.in), coordinated respectively with an Indian host institution PI (VAJRA) or an Indian PhD supervisor or MoU partner institution (OVDF). Check the live call for current forms, deadlines, and required endorsements before applying.
