Chief Minister (CM) IT Fellowship Program, Chhattisgarh

What is the CM IT Fellowship Program?

CM IT Fellowship Program is a talent scheme of the Department of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of Chhattisgarh, delivered with the Chhattisgarh Infotech Promotion Society (CHiPS) and the Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee International Institute of Information Technology, Naya Raipur (IIIT-NR). According to the fellowship portal at cmitfellowship.cgstate.gov.in, the programme exists to "empower and train young professionals in the field of software-driven analysis" and to place them on real governance projects inside state departments.

CM IT Fellowship is unusual among state schemes because it is not a grant, a subsidy or a one-time cash transfer. A selected candidate becomes a full-time M.Tech student in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence at IIIT Naya Raipur, draws a monthly stipend of Rs 50,000 for 24 months, and simultaneously works as an embedded technology resource in a Chhattisgarh government department.

Main features

• Two-year programme spread across four semesters.
• Monthly stipend of Rs 50,000, paid for the entire 24 months.
• Full tuition fee borne by the Government of Chhattisgarh.
• A laptop or desktop with the required software licences, provided free.
• Roughly 7 months of classroom academics and 15 months of department deployment across the two years.
• An M.Tech degree in Data Science and AI at the end.

How the two years are structured

According to the fellowship portal, year one runs as six months of academics followed by a four-month department placement. Year two opens with two months of academics, then a six-month placement, then a final month of academics and a five-month deployment. The design deliberately front-loads teaching and back-loads field work, so that by the second year a fellow is contributing usable analysis rather than learning basics.

Who is eligible for the CM IT Fellowship?

You can apply if:

• You are an Indian citizen.
• You hold a Chhattisgarh domicile certificate.
• You are not more than 30 years old on the last date of application.
• You have qualified GATE in the Computer Science (CS) or Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (DA) paper with a valid, unexpired score.
• You scored at least 60 per cent marks or 6.5 CPI in your qualifying degree.

Relaxation: SC, ST and PwD candidates get a relaxation of 5 per cent marks or 0.5 CPI on the academic cut-off.

You cannot apply if:

• You have no valid GATE score in CS or DA. There is no non-GATE route.
• You cannot produce a Chhattisgarh domicile certificate. Residence in the state without a domicile certificate is not accepted.
• You have crossed 30 years on the cut-off date.
• Your degree percentage or CPI is below the cut-off even after the applicable category relaxation.
• You qualified GATE in a paper other than CS or DA, for example Electronics or Mechanical Engineering. Those papers are not eligible for this fellowship.

The domicile condition is the single most important filter and is checked strictly at document verification, because the stated purpose of the scheme is to build a technology talent pool that stays and works in Chhattisgarh.

What documents are required for the CM IT Fellowship?

Carry originals plus one self-attested photocopy set to document verification. Scanned uploads on the portal are checked again against originals, and a mismatch at that stage costs the seat.

How to apply for the CM IT Fellowship Program

1. Watch the admission page on iiitnr.ac.in and the fellowship portal at cmitfellowship.cgstate.gov.in for the intake notification. Applications have typically opened around July for a June-starting batch.
2. Register on the IIIT Naya Raipur admission portal with your name, mobile number and email address, and verify the OTP sent to you.
3. Fill the application form with your personal details, Chhattisgarh domicile details, academic record and GATE registration number and score.
4. Upload scanned copies of the domicile certificate, GATE scorecard, degree certificate, marksheets, photo ID, category certificate if applicable, and your photograph.
5. Pay the application fee of around Rs 500 online and save the payment receipt along with the application number.
6. Download the admit card when released and appear for the offline skill test conducted by IIIT Naya Raipur at the notified centre.
7. Check the merit list, prepared as 70 per cent GATE weightage plus 30 per cent skill test marks.
8. Attend document verification with all originals, then accept the seat allotment and complete admission formalities at IIIT Naya Raipur.

There is no offline application route for the fellowship itself. The form must be submitted online; only the skill test and document verification are physical steps.

How much does the CM IT Fellowship pay, and what is not covered?

Covered by the Government of Chhattisgarh

• Rs 50,000 per month stipend for both years, that is up to Rs 12 lakh over 24 months.
• The full tuition fee for the M.Tech in Data Science and AI.
• A laptop or desktop with the software needed for the coursework.

Not covered, and payable by the fellow

• Hostel rent and mess charges at IIIT Naya Raipur.
• Examination fees.
• Medical insurance.

Prospective applicants should budget for hostel and mess separately. The stipend is generous enough to absorb these, but they are not waived, and candidates who assume a fully free ride are often surprised at admission.

How to check your CM IT Fellowship application status

1. Log in to the IIIT Naya Raipur admission portal with the credentials created at registration.
2. Open the application status or dashboard section to see whether your form is submitted, under scrutiny, or accepted.
3. Watch the announcements section of iiitnr.ac.in for the admit card, merit list and counselling schedule, which are published as PDFs rather than individual messages.
4. Call the admissions office on 07712474040 if a published list does not show your application number at all.

Why CM IT Fellowship applications get rejected

• Domicile certificate missing or in the wrong format. A residence proof such as a rent agreement or an Aadhaar card with a Chhattisgarh address is not a substitute for a tehsildar-issued domicile certificate.
• GATE paper mismatch. A GATE qualification in a non-CS, non-DA paper does not meet the eligibility condition.
• Age crossed. The 30-year limit is applied on the last date of application, not on the date of the skill test or admission.
• Percentage or CPI below the cut-off, particularly where a candidate assumes a relaxation they do not qualify for.
• Absence from the offline skill test. The 30 per cent skill test component cannot be waived, so a no-show removes the candidate from the merit list.
• Documents uploaded but unreadable, a common and entirely avoidable reason. Scan at a legible resolution and check each file before submitting.

Key dates for the CM IT Fellowship

According to the admission timeline published for the programme, applications typically open in July, the merit list and skill test fall in August, and document verification and seat allotment follow shortly afterwards, with the batch beginning around June of the following academic cycle. The 2025-26 batch is already running and the next intake is expected from June 2026. Dates shift year to year, so treat the live notification on iiitnr.ac.in as authoritative rather than any previous year's calendar.

Help and grievance redressal

• IIIT Naya Raipur admissions: 07712474040
• Admissions email: adminssions@iiitnr.ac.in (as printed on the fellowship portal)
• Fellowship portal: cmitfellowship.cgstate.gov.in
• Nodal department: Department of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of Chhattisgarh, through CHiPS

No agent or consultancy can secure a CM IT Fellowship seat. Selection is a published merit list built from a GATE score and a skill test, and anyone offering a guaranteed seat for a fee is running a fraud.