The agricultural sector has been one of the mainstays of the Indian economy both in terms of its contribution to GDP as well as a source of employment. As the third-largest agriculture producer by value – the industry has witnessed numerous changes over the past few decades. Along with the Government’s initiatives and programs, the emergence of private players has fuelled the pace of agricultural growth in India. Agri-tech startups have taken the center-stage and are disrupting the Indian agricultural economy in unexpected ways. Entrepreneurs are building innovative solutions to indigenous problems and are surviving the stiff competition by being absolutely real.
A Seasoned Entrepreneur Having Multi-Faceted Excellence
Gramco Infratech Pvt Ltd– A Rural Company is the brainchild of Raman Singh Saluja to address the needs of the farmer community in India. As the Founder of Gramco, Raman has been a pioneer in setting up an integrated farming services and agricultural infrastructure. After completing his graduation and Master’s in Business Administration, entrepreneurship came naturally to him. His expertise and business acumen led him to be an integral part of various key ventures before he finally conceptualized Gramco in 2009. Prior to Gramco, He was also appointed as the Nodal Officer for the state of Madhya Pradesh by MANAGE, under the Ministry of Agriculture. He has very diverse business knowledge as a result of his past ventures varying from wind power, exports of agricultural commodities and being involved in families steel business. He is the Founder- curator of the ‘Global Shapers Community’, Indore Hub, – which is an initiative of the World Economic Forum. Failure and success is a part of every voyage and Raman’s professional journey is no exception to that. His sheer determination to conquer the challenges and create opportunities has made him stand ahead of the league today. Raman asserts ‘if you believe you are offering a viable alternative which has a commercial potential, you have a possible business potential’.
Journey Fostering Creativity and Innovation
Gramco is derived from the word ‘gram’ which means a village in Hindi language and ‘co’ refers to the short form of company. Raman’s previous entrepreneurial ventures like the export of potatoes and ‘grammandi.com’ – an online agri e-commerce/ market intelligence platform- are the key attributes which led to the formation of Gramco. He analyzed that having a close proximity to farmers and establishing a meaningful relationship with them is the critical first step towards bringing a radical change in the agricultural sector and operating a rural venture. His observation and a detailed study of rural business backed by the interactions with the farmers assisted him to point out the gaps in the hugely fragmented and unorganized industry. Being ahead of the curve, Raman saw a business opportunity to build something meaningful and contribute by taking it to a level where he could manage and deliver better results.
Astounding Services of Gramco Infratech
If not the only one, Gramco stands to be one of the forerunners of introducing farmers to ‘outsourced farming’ – a new concept in the Indian agricultural eco-system. It offers world-class facilities in rural areas of the country and caters to different needs of the farmers under a single roof. It closely works with the farmer community and provides solutions and guidance in the areas of agriculture advisory, input supply, post-harvest storage, automated cleaning/grading/ packing, and market linkages. Over the years, Gramco has evolved and has benefited thousands of farmers with qualitative services and higher income. The company has transformed itself into a full-fledged farming services, product and infrastructure entity – a complete solution provider for the rural sector. Agri inputs and nutrients, warehousing, collateral management and warehouse receipt finance, procurement, value-addition, and contract farming & seed multiplication programs are the key services offered by the company. It continues to develop business models and launch services which are effective and helpful for the farming fraternity. The trust and confidence of the farmers have driven the company to date and that’s the utmost satisfactory experience it has acquired over the years.
Industry Challenges – Ray of Opportunity
The agricultural sector has come a long way since independence; however, a lot is still to be done. Samriddhi Fund managed by SVCL, invested Rs15 crore in 2014 to help scale up infrastructure and geographic expansion. As the face of the rural domain, Gramco too has faced tough challenges and obstacles during the initial years. Human resource, rural connectivity, and ‘over-regulatory’ measures adopted by the government are some of the examples. Additionally, technology and capital are the two indispensable components which need to be looked upon to minimize the challenges in the industry. Continual improvement and embracing technology keeps Gramco ahead in the market, the company has conducted pilot projects with IoT & precision agtech and is soon launching high value agtech solutions.
Marching towards the Horizon
As the agricultural sector is on a steady trajectory of growth, Gramco is determined to cement itself as a formidable, FARM TO FORK & FACTORIES TO FARMS, player in the years to come. Attributing his family’s support as the main success factors, the company looks to hold a positive outlook for the future. It is confident that the business model and its guiding principle of ‘farmer first’ will assist Gramco to create milestones as well as giving a tough competition to the best in the industry.
Source :-The 18 Innovative Startups to Watch in 2018
Gramco Infratech – Empowering Farmers and Innovating Agri- Infrastructure Solutions
