Collaborating with India on science and research

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The Australia-India Strategic Research Fund (AISRF) supports scientists in India and Australia to collaborate on leading-edge research.

Priority areas of research

The fund has supported research collaboration across more than 20 different mutual priority areas, including:

agriculture
astronomy and astrophysics
biomedical devices and implants
clean energy technologies
food and water security
information and communication technology
marine sciences
nanotechnology
stem cells and vaccines

The fund can also support new urgent research priorities for both countries, such as responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Collaborative research projects

The AISRF links Australian and Indian research institutions together to work on strategically focused, leading-edge scientific research and technology projects.

The projects build research capacity and maximise the application, commercialisation and sustainability of research outcomes, supporting the continued economic growth and development of both nations.

How to apply

Competitive grant rounds are held annually and you may only apply while a round is open.

To find out more about AISRF funding round details and to apply for grants visit Business.gov.au.

See the program guidelines for information about the application process, eligibility criteria and assessments. These guidelines apply to Australian applicants only. Indian applicants should follow guidelines issued by the Indian Government.

Latest round outcomes

To see the successful applicants in the latest round of collaborative research projects, visit Business.gov.au.

Targeted workshops

The workshops bring together leading researchers from Australia and India to focus on key issues of mutual interest or contemporary challenges facing both nations.

They aim to:

create, promote and strengthen relationships between our nation’s researchers and research institutions
promote scientific and technological cooperation between Australia and India
find more areas to collaborate where there's significant potential to mutually benefit from outcomes

Early and mid-career researcher fellowships

High-performing Australian early and mid-career researchers can access funding to travel to India and work with leading researchers at major Indian science and technology organisations. The Indian Government also supports Indian researchers to spend time at Australian institutions. These reciprocal fellowships help to facilitate long-term science, technology and innovation collaboration between our nations.

For application details and to read about previous fellowships to India, see the Australian Academy of Science website.

Read about some of the research AISRF has supported in the 10th anniversary booklet
See a list of project and workshop grant recipients [95KB XLS] [320KB PDF]
The independent evaluation of the AISRF showed the program is achieving objectives
For advice on planning and managing a collaboration for success, see our Guide to undertaking international collaboration

Case studies

Contact us

Email aisrf@industry.gov.au
Phone 13 28 46 (8am-8pm, Monday to Friday)
Indian researchers interested in Australian collaboration should contact the Indian Government Department of Science and Technology and Department of Biotechnology