Bhubaneswar, July 7: The Odisha Government has invited applications from eligible PhD scholars for the Mukhyamantri Research Fellowship (MRF) 2026-27 under the Mukhyamantri Research Incentive Programme (MRIP), an initiative aimed at encouraging quality research and providing financial assistance to doctoral scholars pursuing higher education in the State.

In a notification issued on Tuesday, the Higher Education Department said applications have been invited from registered PhD scholars of State Public Universities under the department, as well as universities functioning under other government departments. Interested candidates can apply online through the Student Academic Management System (SAMS) portal.

The online application process will commence on July 7, 2026, at 4 pm and remain open until 11.45 pm on July 30, 2026. Candidates will also have an opportunity to edit their submitted application forms on July 31 between 11 am and 11.45 pm, if necessary.

According to the revised guidelines issued by the Odisha State Higher Education Council (OSHEC), applicants must be permanent residents of Odisha and should have enrolled in a PhD programme between April 1, 2024, and July 19, 2026, under a recognised research guide.

The applications will be forwarded to OSHEC on August 5 for further processing, while the schedule for document verification will be announced later through the SAMS portal.

The department clarified that scholars already selected under MRIP-2025 who are not registered through the SAMS portal will not be eligible to apply again. Candidates have been advised to carefully read the revised eligibility guidelines on the SAMS portal before submitting the Common Application Form (CAF).

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