Hack for Social Cause 2027: students 18-29, cash prizes up to ₹75,000
Hack for Social Cause is a national technology challenge for students aged 18 to 29, run by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports under the Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue (VBYLD) 2027, with IIT Bombay as knowledge partner. The top 5 teams at the national showcase in New Delhi get cash prizes, from ₹75,000 for first place. Entry is free.
Cash prizes (top 5 teams at the national showcase)
- First: ₹75,000
- Second: ₹50,000
- Third: ₹25,000
- Fourth: ₹15,000
- Fifth: ₹15,000
National finalists also get certificates of excellence, and the page lists links to Startup India and incubation programmes. The 36 national finalist teams get online mentoring from IIT Bombay. The FAQ also lists a ₹6,000 prototype development grant for each national finalist team and travel support under applicable MoYAS norms. Cash prizes are subject to tax deductions and may be paid to the Team Lead's registered bank account. These are listed benefits, not an AiCoN guarantee of payment.
Who can enter
- Indian citizens aged 18 to 29 as of 17 August 2026
- Currently enrolled in a college, university or polytechnic. The page says AICTE-registered in one place and AISHE-registered in another, so check that your institution qualifies
- Teams of up to 3 students, or enter alone. Each student can be in only one team
- Every member registers individually on MY Bharat, then the Team Lead registers the team under the Hack for Social Cause track
- HSC 2026 national finalists and winners cannot enter the 2027 national round
What to submit
- A 6 to 7 slide deck on the IIT Bombay template (PPT or PDF, up to 10 MB), covering the problem, solution, impact and implementation, plus a disclosure of how much AI tools were used
- A public GitHub or GitLab repository with complete open-source code, a README with setup steps, architecture notes, sample data or tests, and licence information (FAQ Q21)
- A 3 to 5 minute demo video (preferred, not mandatory): MP4/MOV, at least 720p, up to 80 MB
- Team details, Annexure 1 signed self-certification and a self-attested Student ID Card for each member. The FAQ also asks for government photo ID details at submission
Themes
There are 11 indicative themes, including rural development, education and skills, healthcare, governance and civic tech, environment, digital inclusion, digital safety and cyber fraud awareness, elderly care and assistive technology. You can adapt them to a local problem.
What happens next
- The current HSC timeline and VBYLD tracks agree on state/regional rounds: 7 November to 5 December 2026. The HSC FAQ still says 26 October to 30 November. Confirm the actual schedule with the organiser.
- The updated HSC timeline lists screening for national finalists on 5 to 16 December 2026; its FAQ still has older dates. Three teams per State/UT advance to screening, with one selected for each State/UT.
- Mentoring remains inconsistent: the HSC timeline now lists 17 December 2026 to 7 January 2027, while the VBYLD tracks table lists 10 December 2026 to 7 January 2027. The HSC FAQ has still older wording.
- National showcase and awards in New Delhi: 10 to 12 January 2027, as currently listed.
Rules worth knowing
- Participation is free at every stage
- The VBYLD tracks page says participants may enter only one Innovate for Bharat challenge. Check this before also entering Design for Bharat or Youth Entrepreneurs Challenge
- You keep the intellectual property in your entry. Organisers get a non-exclusive licence to display and promote it with credit, and the FAQ requires a fully open-source public code repository
- Team names must be respectful and not based on a person, place or community
We read the Hack for Social Cause page and the VBYLD 2027 page on mybharat.gov.in on 13 October 2026. We did not log in, register or test a submission.
How to apply: step by step
Rechecked on 24 October 2026: the public page displays Registration Open, and both current timeline tables list 27 October 2026 for Stage-I. The HSC FAQ still gives 15 October. These are published instructions, not confirmation that your logged-in submission will be accepted.
- Open the official page: mybharat.gov.in/pages/hack-for-social-cause. Entry is free. Confirm your team is eligible: Indian citizens aged 18-29 as of 17 August 2026, currently enrolled in a qualifying institution. The eligibility panel says AICTE-registered; the FAQ says AISHE-registered. Confirm your institution qualifies before preparing an entry.
- Every team member (up to 3, same or different institutions) registers individually on the MY Bharat portal first.
- Choose one Team Lead, then tap NEW REGISTRATION on the page and register the team in the Hack for Social Cause track.
- Prepare the submission: a state-specific problem statement, a 6-7 slide presentation deck (use the IIT Bombay template from the submission page), a public code repository link, an optional 3-5 minute demo video (preferred, not mandatory per FAQ), and the signed team self-declaration (Annexure 1 with IDs and the AI-use disclosure).
- The current timeline asks the Team Lead to submit all documents and the solution by 27 October 2026. Confirm the deadline and portal acceptance because the FAQ still says 15 October; no cutoff time was established.
- State and regional competitions run 7 November to 5 December 2026; top teams reach the national showcase at VBYLD 2027 in New Delhi (10-12 January 2027).
The earlier portal screenshots are omitted because their headers contain the government emblem. The steps above describe the official public instructions. Steps 3-5 happen inside your MY Bharat login and were not tested.
Video guides
We searched YouTube on 19 October 2026 for a step-by-step registration video for Hack for Social Cause 2027 on mybharat.gov.in in English and in Malayalam. We could not verify one that matches this challenge and the current portal, so we are not linking any rather than risk outdated or unrelated instructions.
Frequently asked questions
Is entry free?
The HSC FAQ says participation is free at every stage. Any travel support is subject to MoYAS norms.
Which deadline should I follow?
The updated HSC timeline and VBYLD tracks table now both list 27 October 2026, and the public page displays Registration Open. The HSC FAQ still says 15 October. Confirm with MY Bharat; the public label is not a tested submission or eligibility guarantee.
Can I enter alone?
Yes. The FAQ allows an individual entry or a team of up to three students.
What changed since this post?
Official HSC and VBYLD pages rechecked on 13 October 2026. Prize amounts remain listed. Deadline, institution-registration rule, state dates and mentoring dates still conflict between official sections. Added the FAQ's public open-source repository requirement, finalist grant, travel conditions and prize-tax note. AiCoN did not register or test a submission, and no government emblem is used.
Sources: Hack for Social Cause (MY Bharat), VBYLD 2027 tracks and timeline. Checked 13 October 2026; deadline, apply steps and video search re-checked 19 October 2026. This is an AiCoN explainer, not a government publication.
Scoped recheck 24 October 2026: official dedicated HSC page and VBYLD tracks rechecked. Public page displays Registration Open; dedicated timeline and tracks both list 27 October 2026 for Stage-I and 7 November-5 December for state rounds, but HSC FAQ still says 15 October and older round dates. Dedicated screening now 5-16 December; mentoring 17 December-7 January differs from tracks 10 December-7 January. AICTE/AISHE institution wording still conflicts. Replaced stale resolved-deadline and earlier-date advice with explicit current timeline versus FAQ conflict; application steps are guidance, not tested submission availability. Prizes, finalist grant, tax/travel and open-code limits retained. Earlier portal screenshots omitted because their headers contain the government emblem; text instructions retained. No replacement screenshot was published. No login, registration or submission test.