IIM Kashipur's Entrepreneurship Initiative Grants Rs 1.6 Cr To Support 10 Agriculture-Centric Start-Ups

IIM Kashipur's FIED allocates Rs 1.6 Crore in funding to strengthen 10 agriculture-focused startups.

Higher academic institutions agree on forming India’s first ‘HEIs-led Agri-Consortium’.

Source : IIM Kashipur

Kashipur: In a significant move, India’s higher educational institutes (HEIs) have agreed, in essence, to create a first-of-its-kind HEI-led ‘Agri-Consortium’ – a move initiated by IIM Kashipur. An in-principle framework in this regard was adopted by participating institutions (HEIs) during the ‘Agri-Entrepreneurship in South Asia' Consortium-2023 organised by the Foundation for Innovation & Entrepreneurship Development (FIED), an incubation center of IIM Kashipur, in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, concluding here today.

Besides the new 'Agri-Consortium' led by IIM Kashipur, the RKVY RAFTAAR Scheme, supported by the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India through FIED, IIM Kashipur, has provided funding of Rs 1 crore 60 lakh to 10 startup companies. These companies operate in the fields of drone technology, agri supply chain, food processing, hydroponics, waste to wealth, and agri-biotechnology industries.

The two-day Agri Consortium 2023 aimed to provide a common platform for academicians, researchers, students, and industry professionals to interact and deliberate on the latest trends and advancements in technology, research, funding avenues, and industry requirements in the agriculture industry.

During the consortium, higher education institutions (HEIs) and universities agreed upon a principled agreement with three steps: first, sharing of startup databases among consortium members; second, dissemination of incubation or startup support programs; and finally, networking and sharing best practices on the platform.

Prof. Kulbhushan Balooni, Director of IIM Kashipur, thanked everyone for the successful completion of the two-day 'Agri-Entrepreneurship in South Asia' Consortium 2023.

“This Agri Consortium will serve as a platform for sharing information on agri-startups supported by member higher education institutions from different parts of the country. This opens the avenues of collaboration between startups from different geographies, helping each other take their innovative solutions to a large number of farmers," Prof. Kulbhushan said. 

Prof. Safal Batra, Associate Professor, IIM Kashipur, and Director, FIED, said, “Through this consortium, we are building a knowledge pool for the startup ecosystem so that we can extend our support to various industries in developing significant startups within the agriculture sector. Additionally, we are going to establish a knowledge bank for failed startups in the agricultural industry to provide insights into their failures. These insights will be shared with policymakers and the government to assist in crafting policies for their benefit.

Around 10 HEIs, including IGKV-Raipur, CCS Haryana Agriculture University, Hisar, Acharya N G Ranga Agricultural University, IVRI Bareilly, Pusa Krishi, New Delhi, GB Pant University, VCSJ Uttarakhand University of Forestry & Horticulture, Bharsar, Uttarakhand, and CCS NIAM Jaipur, and IIm Kashipur, have agreed to a principled agreement to collaborate in the Agri Consortium.