There are three ways to apply for a PhD admit
Path 1: The institute itself funds the three seats in the department (Only some departments have these fellowship seats). Commonly referred to as an institution fellowship. To get this, you must pass both an exam and an interview. The hardest entry is this one. MCQ questions from the field of specific department are frequently found on entrance exams.
Path 2: Having one’s own external fellowship (UGC, CSIR, ICMR, etc.) is the second option. For admission to a PhD program, one may apply twice in one year. You must first meet the faculty members and determine whether you can collaborate with one of them on an agreed-upon topic before moving on. Even then, passing exam cutoffs and an interview are requirements for admission.
Path 3: By way of research initiatives. A funded project can be joined as a JRF/SRF, and after passing an internal qualifying exam, the applicant will be admitted to a PhD programme. This is a simple method, but you must ensure that the project has sufficient money (minimum three years) and the support of the principal investigator. The research project’s goals can be discussed and included in your PhD objectives. There will be less room to develop your own ideas because research programmes already have defined hypotheses.
The three routes are listed in decreasing order of admissions difficulty
PS: Thanks to an institute fellowship, I began my PhD at the department of Neurophysiology. Since I am ineligible for any CSIR/ICMR fellowships due to my educational background and age, institute fellowship was an alternative for me.
For everyone who is qualified for an external fellowship, I strongly advise path 2