About CSIR
Pioneering Scientific Excellence for National Progress
The Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) stands as India’s premier R&D organization, renowned for its cutting-edge innovations across diverse fields of science and technology. With a pan-India network of 37 national laboratories, outreach centers, and an innovation hub, CSIR employs over 3,450 scientists supported by 6,500+ technical staff, driving advancements that shape India’s future.
Key Areas of Expertise:
- Aerospace, Physics, Oceanography, & Geophysics
- Biotechnology, Genomics, & Nanotechnology
- Mining, Environmental Engineering, & Information Technology
- Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals, & Energy Solutions
Objective of the Societal Portal
Harnessing S&T to Solve India’s Pressing Challenges
India’s societal challenges demand innovative, science-driven solutions. Aligned with its mission of “Science for Society,” CSIR’s Societal Portal invites citizens, institutions, and stakeholders to submit pressing issues across key domains. This initiative aims to:
- Identify grassroots problems requiring S&T interventions.
- Develop scalable, sustainable solutions through CSIR’s expertise.
- Foster collaborations between scientists and communities.
Key Problem Domains
Targeted Sectors for Innovation & Impact
1. Agriculture & Medicinal/Aromatic Plants
- Enhancing livelihoods through agricultural research.
- Initiatives: Floriculture Mission, Aroma Mission, and crop productivity technologies.
Agriculture and allied sectors are the primary source of livelihood for a vast majority of the Indian Population. Agricultural research is an important area that CSIR is addressing in its various labs across India. The Floriculture and Aroma Missions are also part of this activity.
2. Disaster Management
- Earthquake-resistant housing and disaster relief solutions (e.g., pandemic-ready food products).
India is vulnerable to a variety of manmade and natural disasters such as earthquake and spread of diseases. The organisation has the technologies to develop earth quake resistant housing technologies and provide relief in the form of food products and other interventions during disasters such as the recent pandemic.
3. Energy Efficiency & Devices
- Promoting energy conservation, audits, and efficient device development.
Conservation and optimal utilization of the precious energy resources is of paramount importance to a country like India. The energy and energy related devices are an important component of research that is being pursued in several laboratories of CSIR. The subset of this activity includes energy audit and monitoring the efficiency of devices.
4. Environment
- Technologies for clean water, sanitation, and ecological balance.
Addressing the issues relating to the environment where we live, is important in order to ensure proper living conditions for the larger section of population. The organisation has developed a suite of technologies that intents to address the problems of the common man in the area of Water, Sanitation and Ecology.
5. Farm Machinery
- Indigenous innovations: Sonalika Tractors, e-Tractors, and waste-to-wealth solutions.
Indigenous farm machinery product development is very essential to improve the efficiency of the agricultural processes and enhance farm incomes. Several farm machinery oriented product development activities are underway in some of the laboratories. The products include Sonalika Tractor, eTractor, Agricultural waste to wealth related technologies, etc.
6. Healthcare
- Combatting diseases (including COVID-19) through diagnostics, pharmaceuticals, and rural healthcare tools.
The health care system in India is beset with many challenges, more so in the rural context. CSIR’s area of research activities in this segment spans across a wide range of diseases. It also includes combating the Covid-19 pandemic in substantial measure in the form of surveillance, pharmaceuticals and other key interventions.
7. Infrastructure & Housing
- Affordable housing, portable hospitals, and earthquake-resistant structures for an Atmanirbhar Bharat.
The CSIR’s technologies for addressing the unmet needs of the country are available and is an effort towards ‘AtmaNirbhar Bharat”. The products developed in this area include low cost and affordable housing technologies, make-shift hospitals, portable hospitals and Earthquake resistant structures.
8. Leather Processing
- High-quality leather product R&D and footwear design expertise.
India is a leader in footwear and other leather products. Research related to leather processing is the key in order to develop high quality products. Designing the footwear is a niche area that needs specialised expertise. This is being addressed in CSIR.
9. Metallurgy & Mining
- Advanced metalworking, foundry technologies, and mineral resource optimization.
Metallurgy and foundry forms the core of the industrial sector that deals with metals and alloys. Metallurgy related research activities are being pursued in several CSIR labs in-line with AtmaNirbhar Bharat objectives of the government.
10. Potable Water
- Affordable purification systems for urban and rural communities.
The availability of affordable potable water for the vast majority of the population is a major challenge that confronts urban and rural India. CSIR is pursuing active research in this important area which aims at solving the problems of the common man.
11. Rural Industry
- CSIR technologies tailored for rural entrepreneurship and industrial growth.
Understanding the issues associated with the rural industry is important. There are several CSIR products that are oriented towards the rural industry. CSIR is promoting these technologies in the rural industrial sector.
12. Aquaculture
- Skill development and capacity-building in fisheries sectors.
Training and capacity building across various segments of fisheries sectors and conducting skill gap analysis for the entire fishery segment in the country is being led by CSIR labs.
13. Skill Development (Urban/Rural)
- Training programs across disciplines to empower India’s workforce.
Human resource development and skilling are very essential for almost all sectors of the industry. CSIR is engaged in a large variety of skill development programs cutting across various disciplines that are of relevance to the society.
Submission Timeline
| Activity | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Last Date for Submissions | 31 December 2025 |
Terms & Conditions
- Eligibility: Open to Indian nationals residing in India.
- Submission Rules:
- Incomplete/illegible entries will be rejected.
- Entries must be original; plagiarized/fraudulent content is disqualified.
- Confidentiality: Participants must not disclose portal-related communications.
- Selection Process:
- CSIR reserves the right to accept/reject submissions without explanation.
- The Director General’s decision is final in case of disputes.
Disclaimer
- CSIR strives for accuracy but disclaims liability for portal content errors or omissions.
- External website links are provided for convenience; CSIR does not endorse their content.
- Users assume all risks associated with portal usage.
- Legal jurisdiction for disputes: Courts of India.
Why Participate?
By contributing to CSIR’s Societal Portal, you become a catalyst for transformative change. Your insights can drive innovations that uplift communities, strengthen rural economies, and address critical national challenges. Together, let’s build a future where science empowers every Indian.
Submit your challenges today and collaborate with CSIR to shape a self-reliant India! 🌟🔬
For details or submissions, visit: CSIR Societal Portal
