The Governance Challenge 2026
Samagra
📌About the Event
The Governance Challenge 2026 is a national-level governance case competition organised by Samagra in collaboration with the Government of Maharashtra. Students will develop bold, practical and implementable solutions to help Maharashtra become a leading innovation hub by 2035. The competition is open to students from 36 selected business and public policy institutions, with finalist teams getting an opportunity to present their ideas directly to Maharashtra’s state leadership.
ℹ️ Event Details
- Edition: Fourth edition
- Theme: “What can the Government of Maharashtra do to make Maharashtra an Innovation Hub by 2035?”
- Competition type: Governance and public-policy case competition
- Mode of conduct: Hybrid; initial submissions and selection rounds are expected to be conducted online, followed by a final presentation involving Maharashtra’s state leadership.
- Focus areas: Innovation policy, startups, technology, research, education, industry collaboration and administrative reforms.
- Participating institutions: 36 selected business schools and public policy institutions across India.
- Finalists: Six teams are expected to advance to the final presentation round.
📅 Important Dates
- Registrations: Currently open.
- Official announcement and launch: August 3, 2026
🎯 Eligibility & Rules
- Eligibilty:
- Students must belong to one of the selected business schools or public policy institutions.
- The detailed list of eligible colleges and programmes is yet to be released.
- Participants will be required to develop practical solutions for strengthening Maharashtra’s innovation ecosystem.
- Solutions should address coordination between government, startups, industries, educational institutions and research organisations.
- Entries should be original, evidence-based, scalable and implementable.
- Shortlisted teams will progress through multiple evaluation rounds.
- Six finalist teams will present their proposals directly to Maharashtra’s state leadership.
🏆 Benefits for the Participants
- Six finalist teams will receive an opportunity to present their solutions before Maharashtra’s Chief Minister and senior state leaders.
- Participants will gain exposure to real-world policymaking and governance challenges.
- Shortlisted teams may receive interactions or mentorship from governance, policy and industry leaders.
- Promising proposals may contribute to Maharashtra’s innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem.