Centre launches Viksit Bharat Buildathon 2025: Registrations open until October 6

Union Education Minister Shri Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday, September 23, launched the Viksit Bharat Buildathon 2025, a nationwide programme designed to encourage school students across India to innovate.

Organised by the Department of School Education & Literacy (DoSEL) in collaboration with the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog, and AICTE, the initiative is being described as the largest-ever school hackathon in the country, as per a release by Press Information Bureau.

Pradhan said the Buildathon aims to “celebrate student innovations, engineer an innovation renaissance, and ensure young generations become key drivers of Samriddhi, Viksit, and Atmanirbhar Bharat.”

Building on past success

The Buildathon builds on the School Innovation Marathon 2024, which led to programmes like the Student Innovator Programme (SIP) and the Student Entrepreneurship Programme (SEP), as well as patents and startups emerging from Atal Tinkering Labs.

It aims to inspire creativity, promote self-reliance, and engage schools in synchronised innovation activities, potentially positioning India as a global hub for student-led innovation.

Registration and participation timeline

The programme opened for registration on September 23 and will continue until October 6 on the official portal, vbb.mic.gov.in. 

Schools will guide students from October 6 to October 13, followed by the submission of ideas and prototypes. The Live Synchronized Innovation Event is scheduled for October 13, with final entries accepted until October 31. A panel of experts will evaluate the projects from November 1 to December 31. The programme will culminate in January 2026 with the announcement of results and the felicitation of over 1,000 winners.