General Terms and Conditions

• Project proposals should be in conformity with the scope of Women Scientist Scheme-B (WOS-B).

  Minimum two years break in career after attaining highest qualification required from S&T qualified women in age group of 27-57 years.

  This being a very broad age range, no further extension in age range is available under any circumstances. Month and Year in which degree of highest qualification has been awarded would be considered for calculating the duration of break in career.
• Incomplete application or application not in the format prescribed under WOS-B will not be considered. It is necessary to tick on one of the theme area code as asked. Decision may be taken based on the major bias towards the theme area of the proposal.
• Applicant will apply as Principal Investigator. Mentor will not be an applicant.
• Applicant must have educational qualification in science and technology disciplines.
• Proposals without a mentor will not be considered.
• Proposals in which host and mentor institute are different will not be considered.
• Mentor should be in a regular position in the host institute. Mentor should not be associated with the host institute as a consultant or visiting faculty.
• Online submission of proposals through WOS Portal is mandatory. Proposal has to be submitted online by the last date of submission as given in the advertisement including extended period, if any.
• Proposal should be submitted only once in the WOS Portal. If proposal received in duplicate, same will not be not be considered.
• If asked in the advertisement, hard copy of online application has to be submitted surely. Hard copy of submitted online application has to reach the department within twenty days from the last date of online submission of proposals including extended period, if any.
• Proposals received only in hard copy form without online submission will not be considered.
• Applicant has to be within the age limit as on the closing date of application submission given in the advertisement including extended period, if any.
• WOS-B component does not provide funds for infrastructure and high-end equipment etc.
• Subject Expert Committee (SEC) will review progress of project.
• Host institution where the project will be implemented assumes administrative responsibilities of project.
• DST reserves the right to terminate the project at any stage if it is convinced that the appropriate progress is not being made in project.
• Project will become operative with effect from the date on which the first grant is received by the implementing institute. The Implementing Institute as well as Principal Investigator will intimate this date to the It will, in no case, later than one month after the receipt of the grant by the Institute.
• The institute shall submit to DST the necessary expenditure statement, Audited Statement of Accounts, Utilization Certificate in respect of the funds released in connection with the implementation of the project. The PI shall furnish annual progress report to DST indicating the achievements/progress as well as the problems faced if any.
• The funds will be released in the name of the implementing institute only.
• In case of arbitration, Secretary DST would be empowered to take suitable decision.

DETAILED GUIDELINES

1.              Date of Commencement of Project & its Duration:

Duration of project is normally of 3 years or as specified in the first sanction order.

2.              Principal Investigator & Scientist Mentor:

1. The principal investigator (PI) will be primarily responsible for the implementation of project. The project team consists of the PI and the scientist mentor as per the sanction order. It is necessary to ensure that the project is carried out by the project team in a cohesive manner.

1. Women scientist and project staff, if any, appointed under the project, are to be treated as temporary employees and will be governed by the Administrative rules/ service conditions of the implementing institute. No reference on these issues shall be made to this Department. The Department shall have no liability, whatsoever, for the project staff after completion of the project

• The first sanction order specifies the number of personnel if any other than PI.

1. PI has to report to the duty to the Scientist Mentor.
2. PI has to report to the duty as per duty hours of host institute.
3. Apart from the project related activities, PI may also carry out academic duties as assigned by the host institute subject to smooth and timely implementation of project.

• PI will maintain logbooks/register for all chemicals, glassware, equipments and travel details.
• Every progress report has to be certified by the project mentor.

1. The Fellowship is a scientist- specific and non-transferrable.
2. The fellowship will be paid to the scientist on annual basis through implementing institute.
3. Apart from the consolidated Fellowship amount, no other allowances such as PF, and LTA etc. will be permissible. No liability on any of these lies with the DST.

• The fellowship amount is taxable.

3.               The Implementing Institution:

1. Implementing institute will maintain the attendance register of This information will be made available to DST as and when required.
2. In case, the PI is shifting to another institution on new appointment, the project could be transferred to that institution with the mutual consent of both the institutions and of DST. Such requests for transfer of the project should be sent well in advance and should be accompanied with ‘No Objection’ certificate from the new host institution.

• In case, the PI leaves the project due to unforeseen circumstances, the host institute has to return the unspent balance along with the Utilization Certificate (UC)& Statement of Expenditure (SE) and details of equipment procured under the project.

1. PI as well as the implementing institution has the responsibility of informing DST about any change in the status of PI/Scientist Mentor including relieving them on short-term deputation for a continuous period of 3 months or more.

4.              Sanction Order:

1. Once project is technically and financially approved, a formal sanction order will be issued by the DST. Total cost of the project is finalized based on the latest quotation(s) approved under the project and other relevant documents related to consumables etc. submitted by the investigator. First sanction order provides detailed breakup of funds allocated under non-

recurring grant like equipment and recurring grant heads like Fellowship, Consumables, Travel, Contingencies and Overheads.

ii)                            Any correspondence with the DST regarding the project should invariably quote the Sanction Order No. and Sanction Date and should be addressed to the concerned official by name.

• Subsequent to the sanction order, grant under General (G) and capital (C) will be released separately through RTGS mode to the host institute.

5.              Release of Grant as Annual Installment and Financial Management:

1. Grant for the project will be released based on annual requirements taking into consideration technical progress and expenditure incurred in the project. First sanction order indicates the budgetary allocation for the entire duration of project under various budget heads such as Manpower, Consumables, Travel, Contingencies, and Equipment In addition to these heads, in specific cases for which an allocation is made will be indicated in the sanction order under Other Costs head e.g. Testing charges, Computational costs, RSIC charges, training workshop etc.
2. First installment of grant will be released along with the first sanction order. It consists of recurring grant including ‘overheads’ for the first year of project and the entire grant for the ‘Equipment’

• Diversion of funds for non-recurring head i.e. Equipment to recurring head like Manpower, Consumables etc. is normally not However, reallocation/re-appropriation of grants under other different heads necessarily requires prior approval of DST.

1. The Equipment sanctioned on the project has to be procured within first year of project PI and the Implementing Institute should complete all formalities in advance for placing the order.
2. The subsequent installment(s) of grant will be released annually on the basis of expenditure incurred in the previous financial year and expected expenditure in the next year.

vi)   Any request for release of the next installment should be accompanied by the following documents:

1. Utilization Certificate (UC) and Statement of Expenditure (SE) for the previous financial year in original. If sent earlier, its copy may be sent to DST
2. In case, the grant is required in the mid-financial year, up-to-date (expenditure since April 1 of present financial year till the end of previous month) authenticated Statement of Expenditure including committed Expenditure is to be sent to DST along with request letter for
3. Technical annual progress Report, if not sent

• Formal approval of the Department must be taken to carry forward the un-utilized grant from the previous financial year to the present financial This request is to be made while sending the authenticated Statement of Expenditure (SE) and Utilization Certificate (UC) of that financial year.
• Utilization Certificate is to be submitted to DST on financial year wise It is to be submitted within a period of 3 months from the closing of financial year (31stMarch) of that year.

1. The implementing institution will maintain separate audited accounts for this The grant is to be kept in a savings bank account earning interest in a Public Sector Bank/Regional Rural Bank and not in private Sector Bank, and the interest earned has to be reported to DST and also to be reflected in the Statement of Expenditure. The interest earned in the project is to be deposited in the Consolidated Fund of India (www.bharatkhosh.gov.in). Interest amount shall not be adjusted towards future release of grant. A certificate generated after deposition of interest in www.bharatkosh.gov.in shall have to be submitted along with SE/UC.

1. The institute will not entrust the implementation of the work for which the grant is being sanctioned to another institution nor will it divert the grant to other institute as assistance. In case the institute is not able to implement the project, it should refund to this department the entire grant or the balance grant at the
2. For equipments acquired solely from the project grants (Capital), the Institute shall maintain an audited account in the form of register in the prescribed The Institute is required to send to this Department a list of equipments acquired from the grant.

• The grant shall not be utilized for construction of any building or acquiring vehicles etc.
• All the capital assets acquired from the grant will be property of Government of India and will not be disposed of. The Government of India has the discretion to gift these assets to another Institute if it is considered appropriate and After completion/termination of the project, the Government of India will be free to sell or otherwise dispose of these assets. The institute shall render to the Government necessary facilities for arranging the sale/gifting of these assets.
• This Department reserves the right to terminate the project at any stage if it is convinced that the grant has not been properly utilized or appropriate progress is not being made.

1. The comptroller & Auditor General of India, at his discretion, shall have the right of access to the books and accounts of the Institute maintained in respect of the grant received for the project from the Government of India.

6.              Progress Evaluation and Monitoring:

1. PI through the implementing Institute will furnish to this Department two copies of the Annual Technical Progress report of the work carried on the project on an annual In addition, this Department may designate Scientist/ Specialist or an Expert panel to visit the Institute periodically to review the progress of the work being carried out and to suggest suitable measures to ensure realization of the objectives of the project. The implementing Institute will provide all facilities to the visiting scientist/ specialist or the Expert panel by way of accommodation etc. at the time of their visit.
2. DST organizes Group Monitoring Workshops/review meetings wherein the PIs are invited to present the technical progress of their project. The investigators will attend these workshops since it provides an opportunity to review their progress based on which any midterm requests by the PIs for additional grants/ extension in duration etc. are considered by the Department. Subsequent releases of grant would be based on the reviewing and monitoring committees’ recommendations.

• On completion of the project, PI through the Institute should send the following documents to this Department to enable DST for final settlement of accounts.

1. Three copies of the project Completion Report (PCR) in the prescribed format;
2. Consolidated audited Statement of Expenditure and Utilization Certificates;
3. List of assets/ equipments acquired in the project in the prescribed format; and
4. Any un-spent balance left in the project has to be deposited in the bharatkosh.gov.in certificate generated from it after deposition of the unspent balance shall have to be submitted along with SE/UC.

7.                   Leave:

1. Having accepted the responsibility for the implementation of the project, the PI should be committed to implement the project throughout its duration and should have no plans to go on long leave.
2. During the Fellowship duration, the candidate should not be away from the project for a period of more than 15 days in continuation and 30 days in total duration without prior consent of DST.

• All kinds of leaves e.g. casual leave, maternity leave etc. will be entertained as per rules of implementing institutions.

iv)                     The project stands terminated in the absence of PI for a continuous period of 3 months without intimation to this department.

1. Participation in any scientific event in India or abroad will be treated as on duty.

8.                   Guidelines for Publication of Results and Safeguard of Intellectual Property Rights:

1. Investigators wishing to publish technical/scientific papers based on the work done under the project should acknowledge the assistance received from the DST.
2. PI should not enter into collaboration with a foreign party (individual/industry) without prior approval of DST.

• PI should publish technical reports/papers emerging out of the project work in peer-reviewed journals having impact factor.

1. If the results of work are to be legally protected, the results should not be published without action being taken to secure legal protection for the results.

v)                  In the emerging scenario at the National and International level, the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) has assumed greater significance. Following are the instructions which the PI and the implementing Institutions must follow in regard to IPR:

1. Institutions are required to seek protection of Intellectual Property Rights to the results of research on R&D projects. IPR include patents, registered designs, trademarks, copyrights, plant variety and lay out designs of integrated circuits (IC).
2. IPR generated by publicly funded R&D institutions/ academic institutions, through projects funded by the Government Departments, be owned by the institutions and they will be required to file patent applications at their
3. Institutions can also approach the Patent Facilitating Cell (PFC) set up by this Department to assist them for patent search, filling and maintaining of patent application(s) in India and abroad. These institutions will be free to retain exclusively the benefits and earnings arising out of these
4. If the institute at its own cost takes the patent, it is free to transfer the innovation to industry for commercialization, after concluding an agreement, as per its laid down procedures. However, details of the agreement, amounts received annual sales turnover of the product shall be intimated periodically to this
5. d) Project investigators and research staff working on the project are advised to ensure that they maintain a diary for recording details of such exercise/ experiment etc. along with the dates. Such records will be useful for proving/ establishing the claim of first inventor and its time may be used as a tool for proving

9.                   Guidelines/ Instructions for Technology Transfer and Intellectual Property Rights:

With a view to encourage the institutions to file patent applications on their innovations, motivate them to transfer their technologies for commercialization, and to facilitate them to reward their inventors the following instructions are issued. These instructions apply to those institutions receiving funds for R&D projects from the Department of Science & Technology:

• Inventions by Institutions: Institutions shall be encouraged to seek protection of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) to the results of research through R&D While the patent may be taken in the name(s) of inventor(s), the institution shall ensure that the patent is assigned to it. The institution shall get its name entered in the Register of Patents as the proprietor of the patent.

The institution shall take necessary step for commercial exploitation of the patent on exclusive/non-exclusive basis. The institution is permitted to retain the benefits and earnings arising out of the IPR. However, the institution may determine the share of the inventor(s) and other person from such actual earnings. Such share (s) shall be limited to 1/3rd of the actual earnings.

• Inventions by institutions and industrial concerns: IPR generated through joint research by institution(s) and industrial concern(s) through joint effort can be owned jointly by them as may be mutually agreed to by them through a written agreement. The institution and industrial concern may transfer the technology to a third party for commercialization on exclusive/non- exclusive basis. The third party, exclusively licensed to market the innovation in India must manufacture the product in India. The joint owners may share the benefits and earnings arising out of commercial exploitation of IPR. The institutions may determine the share of the invention(s) and other persons from such actual earnings. Such share(s) shall not exceed 1/3rdof the actual earnings.

• Patent Facilitating Fund: The institution shall set apart not less than 25 per cent of such earnings for crediting into a fund called Patent Facilitating This Fund shall be utilized by the institution for updating the innovation, for filing new patent applications, protecting their rights against infringements, for creating awareness and building competency on IPR and related issues.

• Information: The institutions shall submit information relating to the details of the patent obtained, the benefits and earnings arising out of IPR and the turnover of the products periodically to the Department which was provided funds.

• Royalty-free license: The Government shall have a royalty-free license for the use of the intellectual property for the purpose of the Government of India.

• These instructions are issued with the concurrence of the Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure vide their O.M. No.33 (5) PF II/99

For further information/clarification on this subject, please contact:

Patent Facilitating Cell

Department of Science of Technology Technology Bhavan, New Mehrauli Road New Delhi-110016

The decision of the Secretary, Department of Science & Technology will be final in case of any violation of the above guidelines and binding on the PI & respective institution.

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