PSA, CII Roll Out NTRAF Framework To Bridge Lab-to-Market Gap; Public Consultation Open Till Jan 31, 2026

New Delhi, Dec 30 (KNN) Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India, Ajay Kumar Sood, on December 29 unveiled the National Technology Readiness Assessment Framework (NTRAF), a standardised tool designed to objectively assess the maturity of technology projects from early research to commercial deployment. 

The framework has been developed in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and has been opened for public consultation until January 31, 2026.

Objective Yardstick for Technology Maturity

The NTRAF establishes a unified methodology to evaluate projects across nine Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs), spanning proof of concept (TRL 1–3), prototype development (TRL 4–6), and operational deployment (TRL 7–9). 

It is expected to serve as the operational backbone for R&D funds under various National Missions, enabling more precise allocation of public resources and reducing risks for private investors backing early-stage technologies.

By introducing a structured, evidence-based assessment, the framework seeks to replace subjective claims of readiness with verifiable benchmarks.

Addressing the ‘Valley of Death’

Speaking at the launch, Sood said the absence of a common language between academia and industry has long hindered the commercialisation of Indian deep-tech innovations. 

"For too long, the Indian deeptech ecosystem has faced a precarious situation where academia and industry speak different dialects regarding technology readiness. This mismatch often creates a 'Valley of Death' between TRL 4 and TRL 7, where funding dries up due to perceived risks. The NTRAF moves us from subjective narratives to objective evidence, ensuring that we are not just funding science experiments, but scalable, market-ready solutions," he stated.

Dr. Parvinder Maini, Scientific Secretary, PSA, described the framework as a ‘definitive guide’, noting, “By establishing a common language for technology maturity, we aim to bridge the often subjective gap between a researcher’s claim of readiness and an investor’s or evaluator’s requirement for proof.”

Industry and Market Alignment

Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) CEO Dr. Shivkumar Kalyanaraman stressed that technology readiness should progress in tandem with market validation, especially beyond TRL 4, and proposed a pilot phase in which 20 selected technologies would be cross-validated by the NRDC to calibrate and rigorously test the framework prior to its wider adoption.

Dr. Rahul Katna, Counsellor – Technology, Innovation and R&D at CII, underscored the industry’s role in shaping the tool, stating that its rigorous standards ensure any startup claiming to be ‘deployment-ready’ meets genuine industrial-grade validation.

(KNN Bureau)