Prime Minister Professorship (ANRF)

What is the Prime Minister Professorship?

Prime Minister Professorship is a mentorship-driven research programme of the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF), introduced in 2025. The programme places experienced, superannuated researchers and senior industry professionals inside state universities where the research ecosystem is still developing, so that those institutions gain a full-time in-house mentor rather than occasional visiting expertise.

According to the ANRF programme page, a Prime Minister Professor receives a fellowship of Rs 30 lakh per annum, a research grant of Rs 24 lakh per annum, and an overhead of Rs 1 lakh per annum for the host institution. The tenure is up to 5 years, with a performance review by an expert committee after 3 years.

What the programme is trying to fix

• Emerging state universities teach large numbers of students but produce relatively little research output.
• A large pool of highly experienced Indian scientists retires each year with no structured route back into active research.
• Mentoring works best when it is continuous and on-site, not advisory.

Prime Minister Professorship is deliberately linked to ANRF's PAIR (Partnerships for Accelerated Innovation and Research) hub-and-spoke programme. Only state universities that qualified as Category A spoke institutions under PAIR can host a Prime Minister Professor, which keeps the mentoring aligned with the hub institution already partnered with that university.

Who is eligible for the Prime Minister Professorship?

You can be considered if:

• You are at least 55 years of age on the date of application. There is no upper age limit.
• You are superannuated or retired on the date of application, or you are a serving senior professional from industry or an international institution.
• You have strong research credentials and are still actively involved in research and innovation.
• You are an Indian citizen, or a person of Indian origin holding NRI, PIO or OCI status.
• You are willing to relocate and work full time at the host state university.

You cannot apply if:

• You are below 55 years of age on the date of application.
• You are still in regular service in an academic institution and have not superannuated, the industry and international exception does not extend to serving Indian faculty.
• You are drawing a salary, honorarium or fellowship from any other organisation, since only one fellowship may be held at a time.
• You intend to hold an administrative or managerial post alongside the professorship.

Institutions that are not eligible to host: any institution that is not a Category A spoke university under ANRF's PAIR programme. Central universities, IITs, NITs and national laboratories are not host institutions under this programme, because the purpose is to build capacity where it is weakest.

What documents are required for the Prime Minister Professorship?

How to apply for the Prime Minister Professorship

1. Check the list of eligible host institutions published with the ANRF call; only PAIR Category A spoke state universities qualify.
2. Approach the university and agree on the research and mentoring plan, including which departments will participate. A proposal must involve a minimum of two participating departments.
3. Obtain a signed endorsement letter from the Vice-Chancellor or Registrar, along with a written statement of the facilities the university will provide.
4. Register or log in on the ANRF portal at www.anrfonline.in and open the Prime Minister Professorship call.
5. Fill the online form and upload your biodata, retirement proof, age proof, endorsement letter and facility details.
6. Submit the joint proposal — the application is made by the applicant and the host institution together, and each institution may forward only one proposal.
7. Track the proposal on the ANRF portal. Shortlisted applicants are assessed by an expert committee before the award is announced.

There is no offline or postal route, and there is no application fee.

What is expected of a Prime Minister Professor?

Prime Minister Professors are appointed to mentor, not merely to research. The core responsibilities set out by ANRF are to strengthen the host university's research capability, guide its faculty and research students, build collaborations with other institutions and with industry, and submit annual progress reports. The research grant of Rs 24 lakh a year is meant to fund the work carried out with the host university's faculty and students, not a separate personal research programme.

Where to get help

• ANRF support email: support[at]anrfonline[dot]in
• ANRF phone: 011-26552179, 011-26552197
• Portal: www.anrfonline.in, calls, formats and eligible institution lists are published here

Related ANRF and DST programmes covered on this site include the Prime Minister's Research Fellowship for doctoral scholars and the Prime Minister Early Career Research Grant for young faculty. Prime Minister Professorship sits at the opposite end of the career ladder from both.

How to check your application status

A Prime Minister Professorship application is a joint proposal, so status updates flow through both the applicant and the host university, not through a single individual login.

1. Log in to the ANRF portal. Use the credentials created at the time of submission on anrfonline.in and open the Prime Minister Professorship call to see the proposal's current stage (received, under screening, sent for expert review, or decided).
2. Check with the host university's nodal office. Because the proposal is submitted jointly, the Vice-Chancellor's or Registrar's office that signed the endorsement letter is usually copied on ANRF communications and can confirm whether any clarification has been sought.
3. Watch for committee correspondence. Shortlisted proposals are referred to an expert committee for assessment; any request for additional documents, a revised mentoring plan, or an interaction or presentation will come by email to the applicant and the host institution together.
4. Call the ANRF support line if the portal status has not moved for an extended period. Use 011-26552179 or 011-26552197, and quote the proposal or application reference number generated at submission.
5. Write to ANRF support at support[at]anrfonline[dot]in if the helpline cannot resolve the query, attaching the reference number and the name of the host institution.

There is no SMS-based status alert and no separate offline tracking window for this programme; the portal login and the host university's office are the two authoritative sources.

Common reasons for rejection

• Age criterion not met. Applicants who are not yet 55 years old on the date of application are screened out at intake. There is no waiver, and the fix is simply to reapply once the eligibility age is reached.
• Not actually superannuated. Applying while still in regular academic service, without having retired, is a common ground for rejection unless the applicant qualifies under the separate senior industry or international professional route. Retired status (or the industry/international exception) must be documented at the time of submission, not promised for later.
• Host institution not on the eligible list. Proposals naming a university that is not a PAIR Category A spoke institution are rejected outright. Before approaching a university, check the current list of eligible host institutions published with the ANRF call rather than assuming any state university qualifies.
• Missing or incomplete endorsement. A proposal without a signed endorsement letter from the Vice-Chancellor or Registrar, or without a clear written statement of the facilities the university will provide, is treated as incomplete. The host institution's commitment has to be documented in writing before submission, not arranged informally.
• Fewer than two participating departments. The programme expects a mentoring plan spanning a minimum of two departments at the host university. A single-department proposal is weaker at the screening stage and can be turned down for narrow institutional impact.
• More than one proposal from the same institution. ANRF accepts only one proposal per host institution per call. If a university forwards multiple applications, only one can go forward, so applicants should coordinate with the university's nodal office before submitting.
• Already holding another fellowship or drawing another salary. Since only one fellowship may be held at a time, an application from someone currently receiving a pension-linked honorarium, salary or fellowship elsewhere is rejected unless that arrangement is closed out first.
• Weak or dated research credentials. Because the role is meant to mentor active researchers, a biodata that does not show recent publications, patents, or supervision of research students weakens the case at the expert committee stage. A strong application documents ongoing, not just past, research engagement.
• Proposal implies an administrative role. Since the position is meant for hands-on mentoring, a plan that effectively places the professor in an administrative or managerial capacity at the host university does not fit the programme's intent and is likely to be rejected or asked to be revised.