Budget 2023-24: Accelerating agritech to create a robust ecosystem

Budget 2023-24: Accelerating agritech to create a robust ecosystem
Union Agriculture Minister, Narendra Singh Tomar said that priority will be given to agritech startups and an Agriculture Accelerator Fund will be set up to encourage agri-startups by young entrepreneurs

The government claims that the Union Budget 2023 aims at the inclusive and comprehensive development of farmers. But this needs to be seen in different contexts. However, this is a fact that the budget lays emphasis on promoting the modernisation of the agriculture sector by linking it with technology so that farmers get comprehensive benefits in the long run.

First of all, look at the budgetary allocations for the sector. The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfares get Rs 125,035.79 crores for FY 2023-24 which is marginally higher than the previous year. Out of this, the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE) has been allocated Rs 9,493.59 crore. It is ironic that the agriculture sector now witnesses a 7 per cent reduction in the budget compared to what was proposed in the 2022-23 budget.

Narendra Singh Tomar, Union Agriculture Minister
Narendra Singh Tomar, Union Agriculture Minister

Commenting on the budgetary provisions for the sector, Union Agriculture Minister, Narendra Singh Tomar said, “Priority will be given to startups related to agriculture. The Agriculture Accelerator Fund will be set up to encourage agri-startups by young entrepreneurs, for which Rs 500 crores has been allocated over a period of 5 years. Millets will now be known as Shri-Anna. India is at the forefront of programmes to popularise Shri Anna. The ICAR-Indian Institute of Millets Research (IIMR), Hyderabad will be promoted as a centre of excellence, so that it can excel at the global level as well.”

Is there a fine blend of policy and financial outlays to strengthen the entire rural ecosystem? Reacting to the budgetary announcements, KC Ravi, Chief Sustainability Officer, Syngenta India, said, “The Budget 2023 will cause excellent ripple effects and is definite to catapult the agriculture ecosystem to greater heights by giving more credit support to farmers and also infusing a fine blend of policy and financial outlays to strengthen the entire rural ecosystem.”

KC Ravi, Chief Sustainability Officer, Syngenta India
KC Ravi, Chief Sustainability Officer, Syngenta India

“The governments also plan to build a digital public infrastructure for the agriculture sector. This will work as an open-source digital public good that will support the growth of the agritech industry and startups. The move will definitely enable an inclusive farmer-centric eco-system with the relevant information services for crop planning and help improve access to farm inputs, credit, and insurance, help for crop estimation, market intelligence and support for the growth of agritech industry and startups,” he added.

The expert considers the proposed Agriculture Accelerator Fund to encourage agri-startups by young entrepreneurs in rural areas as a step forward. The fund is expected to bring innovative and affordable solutions to challenges faced by farmers. It will also bring in modern technologies to transform agricultural practices and increase productivity and profitability in a sustainable way.

Anand Ramanathan, Partner, Deloitte India
Anand Ramanathan, Partner, Deloitte India

“The increased outlay for disbursement of agriculture credit, investments in monitoring cooperative societies, focus on micro-enterprises, agricultural accelerator for startups in agritech, increase in digital public infrastructure investments in agriculture, clean plant program for enhancing the productivity of inputs, the encouragement of PPPs in the cotton value chain, skill development programme in agriculture, millet value chain interventions and the investments in fisheries will all help agribusiness from a yield, productivity and price realisation standpoint,” pointed out Anand Ramanathan, Partner, Deloitte India.

Aneesh Jain, Founder, Gram Unnati
Aneesh Jain, Founder, Gram Unnati

Increasing yield and productivity remains a priority. Aneesh Jain, Founder, Gram Unnati Agritech said, “The Budget 2023 is a game changer for the agriculture sector in India. The government has taken bold steps in digitising the sector with the creation of an open-source digital public infrastructure and accelerator fund. Overall, this budget will play a crucial role in modernising and revitalising the agriculture sector in India, bringing economic growth to rural areas.”

Kaushal Sampat, Founder of Rubix Data Sciences
Kaushal Sampat, Founder of Rubix Data Sciences

The agri experts observed that a digital public infrastructure for the agriculture sector is a very progressive step to encourage the adoption of technology in agricultural fields. Kaushal Sampat, Founder of Rubix Data Sciences observed, “This will result in the creation and growth of the agritech ecosystem and attract startups. There are many brilliant startups already working in this field and are waiting for that little fillip, which the government has provided in this Budget 2023. I think this step will go a long way in meeting the goal of expanding the farmers’ income by 2025.”

Abhishek Jain, Fellow & Director- Powering Livelihoods, CEEW
Abhishek Jain, Fellow & Director- Powering Livelihoods, CEEW

Echoing a similar view, Abhishek Jain, Fellow & Director- Powering Livelihoods, CEEW said, “ Over the years, we have seen hundreds of agri-focused startups bridging the information gap for the farmers but limited innovation on hardcore technologies. I hope that the newly announced Agriculture Accelerator Fund brings an explicit focus on hardware technological innovations to address challenges like pest and weed management, affordable storage, and post-harvest solutions, as well as innovations for the livestock and allied sectors.”

Anuj Kumbhat, Founder & CEO, WRMS
Anuj Kumbhat, Founder & CEO, WRMS

According to agriculture experts and captains of the industry, the Union Budget 2023-24 is quite optimistic for the agritech sector. Their contribution to economic growth has been well recognised. “Digitalising the field of agriculture with the latest technologies is a need of the hour and very well-focused in the budget. It will boost sustainable agricultural productivity; help farmers deal with the majority of the problems that they face on an everyday basis and in return will enhance profitability,” said, Anuj Kumbhat, Founder and CEO, WRMS, an agritech company.

Shailendra Tiwari, Founder, Fasal
Shailendra Tiwari, Founder, Fasal

Shailendra Tiwari, Founder of agritech startup Fasal, said, “The push to set up labs to develop apps using 5G for precision farming and other applications can help bring predictability to farming operations. We are confident that this Union Budget 2023 lends an impetus for greater adoption of technology and data in Indian farming.”

With its emphasis on a tech-driven and knowledge-based path, the budget provides a strong lift to startups in the space. The clear focus on technology gives us the strength to carry our work forward on crop yield estimation and loss assessment using drones, space-tech, and mobile interfaces.

Navneet Ravikar, Chairman & Managing Director, Leads Connect Services
Navneet Ravikar, Chairman & Managing Director, Leads Connect Services

According to Navneet Ravikar, Chairman & Managing Director, Leads Connect Services, the Budget 2023 marks a major milestone in the growth of the agritech sector. “The allocation of funds through an accelerator and the three centres of excellence for Artificial Intelligence (AI) play a crucial and transformative role. The fund provides the impetus for young entrepreneurs to bring much-needed innovation to rural areas. Meanwhile, the Make AI in India and Make AI Work for India centres will lend themselves to cutting-edge research that improves agricultural practices, efficiency, and scalability. We have started setting up the Leads Aerospace division with the manufacturing of next-generation drones, Internet of Things (IoT), and micro-satellites, along with an AI and advanced data analytics lab as the focal point,” added Ravikar.

Anoop Kumar Upadhyay, Co-founder, IoTechWorld Avigation
Anoop Kumar Upadhyay, Co-founder, IoTechWorld Avigation

Agriculture sector experts find that the budget’s thrust on rural areas, particularly the agriculture sector is visible. “Several initiatives like Agriculture Accelerator Fund, PPP for enhancing the productivity of cotton crops and focus on last mile connectivity are great news for the country’s economy in general and for us in particular. The announcement of the broad-basing of Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) to cover new-age courses for industry including AI, robotics and drones will lead to precision farming and encourage rural entrepreneurship. It will also lead to the adoption of technologies in the agriculture sector in a big way,” concluded, Anoop Kumar Upadhyay, Co-founder, IoTechWorld Avigation.

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