Scheme for Promoting Young Talents in Science-II (SPYTiS-II)

What is SPYTiS-II?

SPYTiS-II, the Scheme for Promoting Young Talents in Science-II, is the college-level component of the Kerala State Council for Science, Technology and Environment's SPYTiS programme. It is administered by the Science Education Division of KSCSTE at Sasthra Bhavan, Pattom, Thiruvananthapuram.

According to KSCSTE, SPYTiS exists to provide financial and technical assistance to talented young students who have innovative ideas in scientific and technological pursuits. SPYTiS-II extends that support one stage further than the school-level SPYTiS-I: students enrolled in polytechnic colleges and in undergraduate courses in colleges are given financial assistance of up to Rs 10,000 to carry out a science or technology project over one year, under a teacher's guidance.

SPYTiS-II is a project grant, not a scholarship. There is no stipend, no income condition and no marks cut-off published for it. What KSCSTE funds is the work itself, the consumables, materials and running costs of an original investigation that a polytechnic or degree student wants to carry out beyond the syllabus.

Why the scheme exists in this shape

• Polytechnic and undergraduate students in Kerala frequently have workable ideas but no discretionary budget, because departmental funds are committed to the prescribed practical curriculum.
• A Rs 10,000 grant is small enough to be sanctioned widely and large enough to buy the components, chemicals or sensors a real prototype or investigation needs.
• Attaching a teacher guide to each project builds supervisory capacity inside polytechnics and undergraduate departments, not only in research institutions.
• Completed projects feed into Kerala's science congress circuit, which gives students an audience and a public record of the work.

Who is eligible for SPYTiS-II?

You can apply if:

• You are enrolled in a polytechnic college or in an undergraduate course in a college.
• You have an innovative idea in science or technology that can be carried out as a defined project in one year.
• A teacher of your institution agrees to guide and supervise the project.
• Your head of institution forwards the proposal officially.
• The proposal is in the prescribed KSCSTE format, submitted in response to the annual call, with an itemised budget within Rs 10,000.

You are not eligible if:

• You are enrolled in a professional course. KSCSTE states explicitly that proposals from students enrolled in professional courses will not be considered under SPYTiS. Engineering degree, medical, dental, agricultural, veterinary and similar professional students fall outside SPYTiS-II and should look at the council's Student Project Scheme, which is the route designed for them.
• You are a school student in Classes VIII to XII. That is SPYTiS-I, with a Rs 5,000 ceiling.
• You are a postgraduate or research student. SPYTiS-II is pitched at the polytechnic and undergraduate stage; KSCSTE runs separate fellowship and project schemes at higher levels.
• There is no teacher guide, or the institution has not forwarded the proposal.
• The proposal reaches KSCSTE after the closing date announced with the call.

How much does SPYTiS-II pay, and how is the money accounted for?

SPYTiS-II provides up to Rs 10,000 per project. The figure is a ceiling for the whole project, not a per-student amount, and the sanctioned sum is decided against the itemised budget submitted with the proposal.

Because it is a grant rather than a scholarship, accountability follows the money:

• The proposal must carry a line-by-line budget; consumables, chemicals, components, fabrication charges, stationery and local travel connected with the work.
• At the end of the project year the team submits a statement of expenditure in the KSCSTE prescribed expenditure format, together with the project report.
• KSCSTE publishes the guidelines, terms and conditions, expenditure format and application form as downloads on its Student Programmes page, and the terms bind the grantee for the project duration.

A budget that reads as a request for permanent departmental equipment rather than project consumables is the most common substantive weakness in a SPYTiS-II proposal.

How to apply for SPYTiS-II

SPYTiS-II is applied for once a year, through the institution, against an advertised call. There is no rolling online form.

1. Watch for the June call. KSCSTE states that proposals in the prescribed format are generally invited in the month of June every year, advertised on the KSCSTE website and in daily newspapers. Start checking the Student Programmes section of kscste.kerala.gov.in from late May.
2. Fix the idea and secure a teacher guide. Identify a teacher in your polytechnic or college department who will supervise the project through the year and sign as guide. Without a guide the proposal is incomplete.
3. Download the current year's prescribed format and guidelines. Take the application form, guidelines, terms and conditions and expenditure format from the KSCSTE Student Programmes page. Do not reuse an older year's form.
4. Write the proposal with a real budget. State the problem, the method, the deliverable at the end of twelve months, and an itemised budget within Rs 10,000. Specific quantities and unit costs read far better than round figures.
5. Get the head of institution to forward it. The polytechnic or college certifies enrolment and forwards the proposal officially in the institution's name.
6. Send it to the Science Education Division before the closing date. Address it to the Head, Science Education Division, KSCSTE, Sasthra Bhavan, Pattom, Thiruvananthapuram. Keep a copy of the full proposal and note the despatch date.

What happens after a SPYTiS-II project is sanctioned?

The project runs for one year under the teacher guide. At the end of that period two things are due to the Science Education Division: the project report and the statement of expenditure in the prescribed format.

KSCSTE additionally encourages SPYTiS awardees to present their projects at the Science Talent Fair, the National Children's Science Congress or the Kerala Science Congress organised by the council. For a polytechnic or undergraduate student this presentation is often the more valuable half of the award, because it produces a citable public record of independent work before postgraduate applications.

How do I check the status of a SPYTiS-II proposal?

SPYTiS-II has no applicant-facing online tracker. Follow status in two places:

• kscste.kerala.gov.in — the Student Programmes and notifications sections carry the call, the closing date and the list of sanctioned projects.
• The Science Education Division, KSCSTE, on 0471-2548314, the division that processes SPYTiS files. Because the proposal was forwarded in the institution's name, the enquiry is best made by the teacher guide or the head of institution quoting the forwarding reference and despatch date.

Why do SPYTiS-II proposals get rejected?

What are the key dates for SPYTiS-II?

The governing date is the annual call in June. KSCSTE advertises the call on its website and in daily newspapers, and the closing date is stated in that advertisement rather than fixed permanently. After sanction, the project period is one year, and the report and expenditure statement fall due at its end.

Because the call and the deadline arrive together and the window is short, a department that intends to send proposals usually has the idea, the guide and a draft budget ready before the notification appears.

Where do I raise a grievance about SPYTiS-II?

Address the Head, Science Education Division, Kerala State Council for Science, Technology and Environment, Sasthra Bhavan, Pattom, Thiruvananthapuram, or call 0471-2548314, quoting the institution's forwarding reference. If the issue is not settled there, write to the Member Secretary, KSCSTE at the same address. KSCSTE is an autonomous council of the Government of Kerala, so an unresolved complaint can also be lodged through the Chief Minister's public grievance portal at cmo.kerala.gov.in, which issues a tracking number and routes the petition to the council.

Which KSCSTE scheme should a Kerala science student choose?

A basic science undergraduate in Kerala can hold a Prathibha scholarship, which is a personal award tied to Higher Secondary merit, and separately lead a SPYTiS-II project, which funds a piece of work. The two support different things and are applied for through different KSCSTE divisions.