India S&T Scoreboard 2026: 223,005 Research Papers, 62,934 Patent Applications and State Rankings

NITI Aayog launched the India S&T Scoreboard on 3 November 2026 as an interactive platform bringing research publications, patent applications and science-and-technology ecosystem indicators together for India’s States and Union Territories. The initiative is intended to help governments benchmark research capacity, identify areas of strength and use comparable evidence in science policy. Its first national snapshot reports 223,005 research publications and 62,934 patent applications for FY2024–25.

The scoreboard is useful for competitive exams because it combines science policy, innovation, patents, research quality, federal benchmarking and data interpretation. It is not simply a ranking of universities: it also covers government R&D institutions, industry, deep-tech startups, incubators and priority research areas.

What is the India S&T Scoreboard?

The India Science and Technology Scoreboard is an integrated NITI Aayog initiative designed to give policymakers a single view of research and innovation across States and UTs. Before such a platform, research publications, patents, institutional capacity and startup indicators were spread across different datasets and agencies. The scoreboard places ecosystem, output, quality and collaboration indicators together and offers national, state/UT, sector and research-area views.

Vice Chairman Ashok Kumar Lahiri unveiled the platform. At the launch, Prof. Umesh V. Waghmare, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, highlighted the value of a state-level evidence base; Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Member (Science & Technology), NITI Aayog, emphasised the need for reliable, comparable data to support policy. The platform is designed for benchmarking and trend analysis, not for replacing institutional evaluation or peer review.

Official dashboard: India S&T Scoreboard — NITI Aayog.

Research publications: output and state distribution

The scoreboard records 223,005 research publications for FY2024–25 in the Web of Science/InCites-based selection. Its state/UT table shows the following leading publication counts:

These are publication counts in the source’s indexed selection, not a complete count of every paper produced in India. State rankings can reflect research institutions, university concentration, funding, subject mix, collaborations and indexing coverage. A high count does not automatically mean every paper has high impact or that every resident has equal access to research opportunities.

Why research quality indicators matter

Counting papers measures volume; it does not measure influence by itself. The scoreboard therefore includes citation and journal indicators. For FY2024–25, India’s Category Normalized Citation Impact (CNCI) is 0.89, with the world average set at 1.00. It reports 8.5% of documents in the top 10% by citation impact, 28.5% in Q1 journals and 29.9% internationally collaborative documents.

CNCI normalises citation impact by subject area, publication year and document type, making comparisons across different fields more meaningful than raw citation totals. A value below 1.00 means the source-reported average citation impact is below the world benchmark for the selected dataset; it is not a score out of 100 or a direct measure of research quality in every discipline. Q1 refers to the top quartile of journals within a relevant ranking category, not the top 25% of all researchers.

The dashboard also reports an international collaboration CNCI of 1.38 and inter-state collaboration at 29.4% (65,495 papers). Collaborative papers may appear in multiple partner-country or state counts, so these totals are not additive.

Patents: applications are not grants

The scoreboard records 62,934 patent applications for FY2024–25, based on Clarivate’s Derwent World Patents Index (DWPI) analysis. The distinction between an application and a granted patent is essential: an application is a filing seeking protection, while grant follows examination and the applicable legal process. The number should not be described as 62,934 patents granted or commercialised.

Patent activity is classified by institution, funding and research area. In the FY2024–25 research-area view, AI and Cyberphysical Systems account for 20,055 patent applications, Pharma/Med-Tech/Health 13,357, Critical Minerals and Mining 9,443, Electronics and Semiconductors 6,414, and Telecommunications/Networks 6,082. Research-area classifications can overlap because one application may be associated with more than one field.

Research ecosystem: institutions, startups and incubators

Alongside output, the scoreboard gives contextual counts for the ecosystem: 1,260 higher education institutions (139 central, 513 state and 608 private), 356 centrally funded R&D institution records, 38,553 deep-tech startups, 390 incubators and 7,246 Atal Tinkering Labs. These ecosystem counts are marked as data available as of 2026 and are not linked to the FY2024–25 publication/patent selections.

The incubator figure covers listed programmes such as AIC/EIC, ACIC, TBI, iTBI and BioNEST; it is not a complete national census of every incubation facility. Likewise, a startup count is a contextual ecosystem indicator and does not mean every enterprise has raised funding, filed a patent or reached commercial scale.

Priority research areas and policy relevance

The dashboard groups research and patent output into 11 priority areas, including Pharma, Med-Tech and Health; Critical Minerals and Mining; AI and Cyberphysical Systems; Electronics and Semiconductors; Agriculture and Food Security; Biotechnology and Biologics; Water/Ocean/Land Resources; Clean Energy; Telecommunications; Transport and Smart Mobility; and Geospatial/Space Technologies.

For FY2024–25, the largest publication selections include Pharma/Med-Tech/Health (59,633), Critical Minerals and Mining (44,630), AI and Cyberphysical Systems (20,505), Electronics and Semiconductors (18,605), and Agriculture and Food Security (18,428). Because a publication may belong to more than one research area, these area-wise counts should not be summed to reproduce the national total.

For policy, the point is to identify where a State or institution has an existing research base, where collaboration is strong, and where infrastructure or capacity-building may be needed. Critical minerals, clean energy, biotechnology, AI and geospatial science also connect research policy to strategic autonomy, industry, public health, agriculture and climate resilience.

How to read the scoreboard without misusing data

• Output vs quality: publication volume and citation impact answer different questions.
• Applications vs grants: patent filings do not equal granted patents or successful commercial products.
• FY data vs contextual counts: FY2024–25 output is separate from ecosystem counts marked “as of 2026”.
• Overlapping categories: research areas, collaboration partners and sector classifications may overlap; totals cannot always be added.
• Coverage: Web of Science/InCites and DWPI are defined data sources; unindexed output or source gaps may not be represented identically.
• Benchmarking: state comparison is useful for planning, but does not by itself establish causal performance or rank individual scientists.

UPSC, State PSC, SSC and exam relevance

For UPSC GS-III, the scoreboard connects science and technology policy, innovation, research infrastructure, intellectual property, strategic minerals and self-reliance. GS-II can use it for federalism and evidence-based governance: States and UTs can compare capacity and formulate targeted policy. State PSCs may ask the top publication state, key data figures, the institution responsible for the initiative and its purpose.

SSC, Railways, banking, teaching and other general-awareness exams can test NITI Aayog, the Department of Science and Technology, Web of Science/InCites, DWPI, CNCI, patent application vs grant, and the headline figures. Science-policy questions may also connect research indicators to the National Critical Mineral Mission, AI, clean energy and biotechnology.

Static GK and possible MCQ areas

• NITI Aayog: policy think tank of the Government of India; established in 2015, replacing the Planning Commission.
• India S&T Scoreboard launch: 3 November 2026; unveiled by Vice Chairman Ashok Kumar Lahiri.
• Research publication dataset: Web of Science/InCites; patent analysis: Derwent World Patents Index (Clarivate).
• CNCI: Category Normalized Citation Impact; world reference average 1.00.
• FY2024–25: 223,005 research publications; 62,934 patent applications.
• Top publication state in the dashboard: Tamil Nadu (44,611); Uttarakhand: 11,169.
• Distinguish patent application from grant and publication quantity from citation impact.

Official sources and related reading

• PIB/NITI Aayog: India S&T Scoreboard launch, 3 November 2026
• Official India S&T Scoreboard interactive dashboard
• NITI Aayog
• Department of Science and Technology
• Aditya-L1 VELC solar-eruption explainer · Daily Current Affairs 4 November 2026 · UPSC & State PSC Preparation Hub

Data note: Figures are attributed to the NITI Aayog scoreboard and PIB launch release. Publication and patent datasets are source-specific; category overlaps and contextual counts are explained above. The featured image is illustrative, not a screenshot of the official dashboard.