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Affordable Healthcare in India

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A Wellcome Trust scheme to support R&D in India to develop accessible healthcare solutions
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Purpose

The objective of this scheme is to fund translational research projects to deliver safe and effective healthcare products for India - and potentially other markets - at affordable costs.

A key feature of the scheme is to encourage innovations that bring together researchers from both the public and private sectors to extend access of such innovations to the greatest numbers of beneficiaries, without compromising on quality. Projects covering any aspect of technology development for healthcare will be considered, including diagnostics, therapeutics, vaccines, medical devices and regenerative medicine. Proposals drawing on the disciplines of the physical sciences, maths and engineering, as well as biomedicine, are equally encouraged.

A number of awards have been made under this scheme and some examples of the funded projects include the polypill to treat cardiovascular disease, biomedical devices, infectious diseases and a stem-cell-based therapy to restore sight in damaged corneas

Currently we are interested in innovative ideas that will create an impact on the unmet healthcare needs in India. Projects must take into account the criteria for affordability, that the development path proposed maximises wide-spread adoption (including addressing safety and effectiveness) and have a realistic possibility for downstream uptake by a follow-on partner.

Eligibility

Awards will be agreed by Committee and governed by the terms and conditions under each funding agreement that will be negotiated on a case-by-case basis with applicants. The principles of the Wellcome Trust Grant Conditions will apply. Typically, the agreements will contain a provision for the appropriate sharing of benefits.

The agreed funds will be ring-fenced for the specified programme of work. Neither working capital, building nor refurbishment expenditure will be provided. Funding will be released in tranches against the attainment of pre-agreed project milestones.

Institutions

For-profit or not-for-profit institutions, governmental or non-governmental organisations and international organisations operating within the territory of India are eligible to apply, provided they are able to sign up to the conditions of the award ( template).

Companies

The Wellcome Trust is able to use its charitable monies to fund commercial companies in India through Programme-Related Investments (PRI). For further details please refer to our policy on PRI [Word 23KB]. Companies will normally be expected to sign up to specific terms relating to the scheme ( template [Word 127KB]).

Principal applicants and coapplicants

The principal applicant should be based in India and a significant proportion of the programme should be conducted in India, while international collaborations are encouraged where appropriate.

Applicants should normally hold a position of responsibility within the eligible organisation and be able to sign up to or comply with the conditions or terms of an award.

In addition, postdoctoral research assistants - whether seeking their own salary as part of the grant proposal, funded by the Wellcome Trust on another grant, or funded by another agency - are eligible for coapplicant status if they make a significant contribution to a research proposal and have agreement from their funding agency.

Disciplines outside biomedicine

Investigators from disciplines outside biomedicine can apply, providing the project is designed to facilitate or meet a need in healthcare. For example, the application of physics, chemistry, computing, engineering and materials science to the development of medical products is entirely appropriate.

Healthcare need in an area that is not commercially attractive

The Wellcome Trust is committed to the translation of research into practical healthcare benefits across the full spectrum of commercial and orphan or neglected diseases. Disease areas neglected by industry because of the lack of a return on investment may pose a particular problem for downstream product development, approval, manufacture of products for patients, but imaginative ways forward can sometimes be developed (e.g. public-private partnerships such as the Medicines for Malaria Venture).

Intellectual property rights (IPR)/publications

If there are any restrictions on IPR or publications arising from your research, you must provide a written statement that details them. Restrictions on intellectual property may affect your eligibility to apply to the Trust. Please refer to the Trust's conditions or terms of an award. For further information please refer to the Wellcome Trust's policy on IP and patenting and information for applicants’ documents for the appropriate award type (see Forms and Guidance section).

Application process

Prospective applicants should complete a Concept Note [Word 89KB] and send it to Dr Shirshendu Mukherjee: s.mukherjee@wellcome.ac.uk.

All Concept Notes will be considered internally. If a decision is made to invite a preliminary application, the applicant(s) will be sent a link to the form on e-grants.

Preliminary applications will be subject to a triage process.

Shortlisted applications selected by the triage process will be invited to submit full applications and will be subject to international peer review and due diligence by members of our Technology Transfer Advisory Group (TTAG). Applicants will be expected to make a presentation on their proposal to a Committee.

All applications are taken forward by invitation only. Uninvited applications will not be considered.

Application advice

Technology Transfer staff are happy to advise you during the preparation of a proposal.

See the Forms and Guidance tab on this page for application guidelines, specimen application forms and other helpful guidance notes.

  • Applicants will be expected to disclose proprietary information in their full application that is not limited to, but may include chemical structures. Project applications (and any supplementary information provided) will be made available to staff of the Wellcome Trust and external advisors for the purposes of peer-review and due diligence.
  • Applicants will receive independently sought feedback from the Wellcome Trust on their project proposal. This feedback is meant to inform and guide applicants but is not meant to be definitive. Applicants should seek their own independent advice on feedback and its validity.
  • The Wellcome Trust operates a conflicts of interest policy and places obligations of confidentiality on its external advisors (some of whom are employed in the industrial or financial sectors). While the Wellcome Trust attaches great importance to its policies and procedures concerning confidentially and conflicts of interest, it cannot provide any warranty to applicants in this regard.
  • Because the day-to-day business of the Wellcome Trust involves the receipt and review of confidential grant applications, it is only under highly exceptional circumstances that it will enter into a confidentiality or non-disclosure agreement with applicants.
  • Any invitation to apply for funding from the Wellcome Trust does not necessarily mean that such funds will be forthcoming.

The most common application queries are addressed by our FAQs.

Deadlines

Thank you for your interest, but the current round for receiving Concept Notes [Word 89KB] is now closed. We will not be accepting any more Concept Notes for the round.

The date for the next round for receiving Concept Notes will be announced in Q3.

Prospective applicants are encouraged to contact Dr Shirshendu Mukherjee to discuss their proposals.

Contacts

For all enquiries, please contact Dr Shirshendu Mukherjee, Senior Strategic Adviser, Affordable Healthcare India:
E s.mukherjee@wellcome.ac.uk

Or

Technology Transfer
Wellcome Trust
Gibbs Building
215 Euston Road
London NW1 2BE, UK

T +44 (0)20 7611 8202
F +44 (0)20 7611 8857
E techtransfer@wellcome.ac.uk

Forms and guidance

Wellcome Trust, Gibbs Building, 215 Euston Road, London NW1 2BE, UK T:+44 (0)20 7611 8888