Tag: agri-tech startups

Startup India

Startup India is an employment programme of India, this program is the opportunity for new entrepreneur In India. Startup India was a campaign which was first addressed by the PM Narendra Modi on 15th August 2015 at Red Fort, New Delhi. This campaign was introduced under the Government of India as an initiative to develop over 75 startup support hubs in the country.

Startup India scheme is an important government scheme which was launched on 16th January 2016 with an aim to promote and support the start-ups in India by providing bank finances. It was inaugurated by the former finance minister, Arun jaitley.

Organized by the Department for promotion of industry and internal trade, the major objective of Startup India is to discard some of the restrictive States Government policies which include:

  1. License Raj
  2. Land Permissions
  3. Foreign Investment Proposals
  4. Environmental Clearance

Startup India is a Government of India flagship initiative to build Startups and nurture innovation. Through this initiative, the Government plans to empower Startup ventures to boost entrepreneurship, economic growth and employment across India.

The Government’s Action Plan will help accelerate the growth of Startups throughout India, across all important sectors – in Tier 1, 2 and 3 cities, including semi-urban and rural areas – and includes promoting entrepreneurship among SCs/STs and women communities.

Definition of a Startup (for the purpose of Government Schemes only)

A Startup means an entity:

  • incorporated or registered in India not prior to five years
  • with an annual turnover not exceeding INR 25 crore in any preceding financial year
  • working towards innovation, development, deployment or commercialization of new products, processes or services driven by technology or intellectual property

The entity shall cease to be a Startup if:

  • it is formed by splitting up, or reconstruction, of a business already in existence
  • its turnover for the previous financial years has exceeded INR 25 crore
  • it has completed 5 years from the date of incorporation/registration

Further, the Startup shall be eligible for tax benefits only after it has obtained certification from the Inter-Ministerial Board, set up for such purpose.

Eligibility Criteria for Startup India Scheme

  • The start-up must be registered as a Private Company, LLP or Partnership Firm: …
  • The start-up must not be a product of restructuring: …
  • The Startup must not be older than 5 years: …
  • Annual turnover of the start-up must not be more Rest. …
  • The business must be involved in a new product or service.

Four major steps to register a company/ startup in India:

  • Step 1: Acquire Digital Signature Certificate (DSC)
  • Step 2: Acquire Director Identification Number (DIN)
  • Step 3: Create an account on MCA portal- New user registration @ mca.gov.in.
  • Step 4: Incorporate or Apply for the company to be registered.

Under the Startup India programmed, startups were defined and redefined. For instance, the startups’ age was also increased from 5 to 7 years (10 in the case of biotech). The government has taken various initiatives to boost the growing startup culture in the country such as fast-tracking of startup patent applications, income tax exemption, and self-certification.

This is the plan which is released by the government of India to enhance the employment and encouragement for Indian people.

How Agri-tech startups can help farmers?

Farmers are facing a bad time in this pandemic. As per IBEF(Indian Brand Equity Foundation) more than 58% of India’s population is dependent on agriculture for livelihood. The reverse migration of migrants due to covid-19 will also lead to more people being dependent on agriculture as a source of income. The government has come up with some reforms that can help farmers. Now, the question is whether agri-tech startups become a ray of hope for farmers and make their lives better.

Farmers have long been exploited by the present system of APMC. They have earned less due to the presence of middlemen. Thus, farmers are left with fewer returns. Farmers require more than policies and this where agri-tech startups come to their rescue.

Ways in which agri-tech startups can help farmers

Removing middlemen

The major problem that farmers face is of middlemen. This increases the cost per transaction which is mostly 2-3% in case of offline transactions. However, this cost can be upto 0.5% in case of online transactions. This is the same as online stock market investments, where people used to pay a lot per transaction before startups like Zerodha came into the market. The result of this reduction in cost is more profit in the hands of farmers.

Health of Crop

India loses around 30-35% crop due to pests. Also, attacks by insects is a major threat to farmers. The recent attack by locusts have created fear among many farmers. Agri-tech apps can help a lot in such situations. They can help in monitoring the health of crops with the help of AI. One such startup is Plantix which is a Hyderabad and Berlin-based startup. It helps farmers to identify plant diseases, pests and nutrient deficiencies. This is done with the help of AI.

Increasing crop productivity with the help of data

Agri-tech startups can store data and measure the performance of crops. With the data, farmers can identify in which conditions the crop yielding is good. These apps can study the history of land and also comment about the fertility of the soil. This data can also be used by other companies who produce agri based products and can lead to newer developments.

Easy availability of finance

The farmers have faced a lot of problems because of non-availability of finance from banks. This led them to borrow money from unorganised sectors at very huge costs. With these apps, the farmers can maintain their data regarding stock sold and inventory. This will help banks in monitoring their performance and thus banks will be more willing to provide money to farmers.

Challenges that can be faced by agri-tech startups

These startups can definitely help farmers but there are some challenges in their way. Their growth depends on the following factors:

  • Support from government.
  • Faster data penetration.
  • Strong financial support from private investors.

These are some of the technical and legal challenges that these startups may face. Apart from these challenges, the acceptance of these apps by farmers is also a challenge. As many farmers are not tech savy, these startups will have to make farmers comfortable with technology. Even with these challenges, agri-tech startups are likely to change the life of farmers.