Agri-Technological Innovations in India

Agri-Technological Innovations in India

Recently, the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) of NITI Aayog and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) have released a white paper on agri-tech innovation in India.

Some time ago UNCDF launched an innovation platform in collaboration with AIM, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other organizations.

The platform aims to enable cross-border exchange of innovations, insights and investments.

The first initiative of this platform is the Agri-Tech Challenge. This white paper has been issued under this challenge.

Agri-tech is the use of technology and technological innovations to improve the efficiency and production of agricultural processes.

The potential of the Indian agri-tech market is estimated to reach US$ 24 billion by 2025. Of this, only less than 1% has been achieved so far.

Challenges before Agri-tech startups –

  • The high cost of infrastructure and equipment is a major barrier to the expansion of agri-tech solutions.
  • There is a lack of digital literacy.
  • The cost of reaching customers is very high.
  • Data sets related to agriculture and farmers are insufficient.

Key recommendations of report –

  • Easy access to available public data about farmers, land records, financial status, weather reports, meteorological data etc. should be ensured.
  • Transparency should be ensured in the licensing process for agri-tech start-ups by digitizing the entire process.
  • The creation of local agriculture-related infrastructure should be encouraged. This should be done by providing incentives and funding from formal financial institutions.
  • State specific agri-tech policy should be adopted to promote agri-based start-ups.

UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF)

  • It is the principal catalytic financing institution of the United Nations for the world’s least developed countries (LDCs).
  • It is an autonomous and voluntarily funded United Nations organization. It is an organization affiliated to the United Nations Development Programme.
  • It was formed in 1966 by the United Nations General Assembly.

Source – PIB

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