Smart India Hackathon 2026: dates, rules, idea PPT and how to prepare

By Vikram · Updated 14 Oct 2026

Smart India Hackathon (SIH) is the national hackathon run by the Ministry of Education's Innovation Cell and AICTE, where college teams solve problem statements set by ministries, state governments, PSUs and companies. This guide covers SIH 2026 from the official guidelines on sih.gov.in, checked on 14 October 2026.

SIH 2026 at a glance

How SIH 2026 works, step by step

1. SPOC registration (from July 2026): each college registers a Single Point of Contact (SPOC) on the SIH portal.
2. Internal hackathon: the college runs its own round, and only teams selected there can go further. A college can nominate up to 50 teams (45 shortlisted and 5 waitlisted).
3. Team nomination: the SPOC uploads the selected teams; each team leader then gets portal login details.
4. Idea submission: the team leader picks a problem statement (or the Student Innovation category), enters the idea title and description, and uploads the idea presentation as a PDF. For SIH 2026 this closed on 9 October 2026, with one-time edits to team name, consent and PPT allowed from 2 to 9 October.
5. Evaluation and shortlisting: experts evaluate the ideas, and shortlisted teams are announced on the portal and by email. Usually 4–5 teams per problem statement may go to the grand finale.
6. Grand finale: shortlisted teams travel to their assigned nodal centre and build a working prototype in front of evaluators.

Team rules

• Exactly 6 members, including the team leader.
• At least one female team member.
• All members from the same college: inter-college teams are not allowed.
• Hardware teams are encouraged to be multidisciplinary (mechanical and electronics engineers, product designers, programmers).
• Teams can add up to 2 mentors from industry or academia with relevant experience. Mentors are optional.

The SIH 2026 idea PPT

Use only the official template from sih.gov.in and don't change its headings. It has six slides: title page, proposed solution, technical approach, feasibility and viability, impact and benefits, and research and references. Keep it to six slides including the title, write in points and diagrams rather than paragraphs, and upload it as a PDF. See the slide-by-slide breakdown.

Evaluators score ideas on novelty, complexity, clarity and detail in the prescribed format, feasibility, practicality, sustainability, scale of impact, user experience and potential for future work.

Grand finale: what to expect

• It is held offline at nodal centres, which can be anywhere in India. SIH 2026's finale is proposed for December 2026; check the portal for your centre and dates.
• Bring the stamped college photo ID and the consent letter: both are required to take part.
• Nodal centres arrange accommodation. Travel is reimbursed up to ₹3,000 per person for the round trip, based on actual bills.
• Only registered team members and mentors can participate or stay at the venue.
• The organization behind each problem statement picks the winner, and isn't obliged to declare one if no proposal meets its expectations.

How to prepare

1. Pick problem statements early. The portal shows how many ideas each problem statement has received. A less crowded statement you understand well beats a popular one.
2. Read the ministry's context. Look up the department behind the problem statement, what it already uses and who the real users are.
3. Win your internal hackathon with a prototype. A working demo, even a rough one, is the strongest argument in a crowded college round.
4. Make the PPT specific. Name the user, put one number on the problem, and draw the architecture. Paragraphs lose to diagrams.
5. Split the team by strength. For software: frontend, backend, ML or data, research and presentation. For hardware: electronics, mechanical, firmware and design.
6. Practise for 36 hours. Smaller college hackathons are good rehearsals. Browse upcoming hackathons and online hackathons.

Tip: Missed SIH this year? The guidelines say SPOC registration starts in July, so plan your team and internal-hackathon prototype over the summer before the next edition.

Browse upcoming hackathons