Most recommended agriculture solution providers in india 2020

www.insightssuccess.in
Dr. IdrisBohra
Most
Agriculture
SolutionProviders In India-2020
Recommended
VOLUME 03
ISSUE 03
One of the Most
RESPONSIBLE
AND TRUSTED
AGROCHEMICAL PARTNER
of India

Editor’s Note
here is a reason why India is known as
Tan agricultural country. Most of our
ancestors and our past generations
were totally dependent on agriculture. Almost
everyone was connected to agriculture in
some way. Hence, India became a country of
agriculture.
Over the years, things changed, development
occurred. Yet, agriculture is still deeply rooted
in India. This is because the majority of the
population still resides in rural areas. Although
there has been a trend of people moving to
cities like Mumbai and Delhi, there still are
many whose primary occupation is agriculture
and its allied service.
Agriculture today provides employment to
over half of the workforce of the country.
Agriculture has always contributed towards
the economy of our country, be it now or in
the past. Speaking of which, today, agriculture
contributes towards more than 16% of the
GDP.
India is known to be the largest producer of
spices, pulses, rice, wheat and other grains.
According to a report, one ﬁfth of exports is
contributed by spices. If it is put to its worth, it
can be said it brings around 6.42 billion dollars
to our country.
The reason behind this is the abundant
availability of fertile land. All over the country,
a variation is seen in the soil type. This has led
to growth of different types of crops and
plants. Another major reason behind India
being an agricultural country is the climatic
condition. Though most of the places in India
THE
BACKBONE
OF INDIAN
ECONOMY

have a tropical climate there are places where
there is extreme hotness or coldness.
However, it can be said that the climatic
conditions are extremely favourable for
diverse crop cultivation.
Nevertheless, be it India or any other country,
our livelihood totally depends on the produce
that farmers supply to the entire world. There
was a time when people wanted to opt every
other occupation other than agriculture.
However, today, due to advancement in the
technology, people are opting for farming
and agriculture related occupations.
Science has indeed helped the agriculture
industry. There are various techniques which
have been useful in production of crops.
Today, many youngsters with highly qualiﬁed
degrees opt to farm while implementing
these techniques.
Over the years, agro-based industries have
emerged which are facilitating the growth of
the agriculture sector. However, due to
various reasons like pollution and use of
chemical ingredients for farming, farmers and
the agriculture sector have been facing a slow
down.
Owing to this, there are numerous agriculture
solution providers that are uplifting the
agriculture sector. Hence, we have
handpicked up Most Recommended
Agriculture Solution Providers In India-
2020. On the cover we have Ezzy Bio
Sciences Pvt. Ltd. serving over two lakh
farmers by giving them quality solutions for
farming and featuring Dr. Idris Ali Bohra.
We have also featured Aries Agro; Gram
haat and Smur Agro. Along with this, we have
featured interviews with Ross Lifescience,
Private Limited Swasti Agro and Tractor
Guru.
Apart from this, we have also featured articles
by our talented in-house writers.
Happy Reading!
Shambhavi Mhetre
Shambhavi Mhetre

C O N T
Ezzy Bio Sciences Pvt. Ltd.
It’s Core is Responsible
Farming by Supplying Toxin
-Free Products
TractorGuru
Simplifying
Mechanization
Editor’s View
The Rise Of Packaging
Brand Management
Companies In India
Aries Agro Limited
Creating Value for Farmers
and all Stakeholders with
Dedication and Innovation
20
Gram-Haat®
Empowered, Rural India
26
Ross Lifescience Private
Limited-Upholding a
Decade Long Legacy of
Excellence and Innovation
30
SMUR Agro Ventures
Transforming the Agricultural
Space by Promoting Organic
Farming
38
Swasti Agro
A Farmer-Centric
Social Venture
40
Editor’s Choice
6 Beneﬁts of Organic
Farming over Conventional
Farming
32
Cover Story Interview CXO
08 16 24

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I N T E R V I E W I N S I G H T S SW I T H
Over the years, the agriculture sector has been
registering steady progress. From using the
traditional tools and equipment to using complex
types of machinery for farming, farmers have moved ahead.
The technological advancements have indeed helped the
agriculture space change for good.
There have been many companies that have contributed
towards this phenomenal transformation. However,
TractorGuru is one emerging company delivering tractors
according to the usage. Depending on the necessity,
TractorGuru offers a range of tractors. From used tractors to
brand new tractors, TractorGuru provides a variety of
farming machinery products and services with tractors
being the dominant product.
In this interview, Manik Mital, the Founder and CEO of
TractorGuru takes us through an interesting journey with
his company.
What prompted you to start an Agriculture Solution
provider?
TractorGuru.in went live in August 2019. We are
simplifying mechanization for Indian farmers. There are
more than 118 million cultivators in India. Farm
mechanization is a key driver of increased productivity and
it also improves the quality of life for the farmers. From our
experience, we realized that farmers did not have easy
access to reliable information about the tractors and
implements that are right for them. Increasing penetration
of low-cost smartphones and cheap data plans enabled us to
provide this information to them at their fingertips.
Please share with us the initial struggle that worked as
the strength behind the current success of the company.
The first version of our website was quite bad frankly. We
had created features which were not needed by users and
missed out on many features which were crucial. However,
we learned from the experience. We spent many days in the
field doing user research and then totally redesigned our
website based on our insights. This led to higher average
time spent on the site by each user to increase more than
50%. Also, our overall traffic shot up after we designed the
site.
Tell us about the services you provide through your
venture.
TractorGuru provides a content-rich platform to access
high-quality information about more than 300 Tractors
models sold in India. Users can search, discover, compare,
select and buy tractors on our website www.tractorguru.in.
In addition, we also provide classifieds services for sellers
of pre-owned tractors. We have the only dedicated used
tractor classifieds platform in India and we have served
more than 2000 sellers out of which almost 500 sellers have
sold their tractor through our services.
What is the USP of your company that renders it
different from its competitors?
The farm mechanization space in India is a $ 14 billion
industry. It is large enough for many differentiated players.
We are focused on our customers and intend to do better
each day. We are the fastest growing and now the second-
largest platform for farm mechanization in India.
We are hitting an annualized revenue of 50 lakh plus in the
first year since the launch. Our site attracts more than 2
million visitors. Our best in class used tractors app has been
downloaded more than 30,000 times in the last 6 months.
While we are proud of our accomplishments, we are driving
towards being the preferred platform for farm
mechanization in India.
Even though we are a late entrant and have some catching
up to do, we are confident that we will become the
dominant marketplace in this Farm Mechanization space.
Our guiding principle is to connect the customers with the
farm machinery that is right for them. We respect the
privacy of our users and only capture customer information
when the customers identify the products that they are
interested in. We also minimize the number of intrusive
Simplifying Mechanization
www.insightssuccess.in16 | March 2020

U C C E S S
ABOUT THE LEADER
Manik Mital has over 15 years of diverse international experience in Consulting, Ag and
Construction Equipment industries. Previously, he has worked for John Deere across Strategy,
Manufacturing, Sales and Marketing roles. Manik was a key member of the project team to set
up John Deere Dewas Works, a greenﬁeld tractor manufacturing facility. He developed his
marketing expertise as an ex-pat in John Deere Singapore where he worked as
Marketing Planning Manager APAC and Africa. In his last role at John
Deere, Manik was based in Singapore and was Sales Man
ager for Construction Equipment in Malaysia.
Manik moved back to India in 2016 in a high visibility
assignment at Mahindra and Mahindra where he was
EA to President for the 3.5 Bn+ Farm Equipment
Sector (FES). He then led a Mahindra internal start-
up called Tractorbaazi where he conceptualized and
set up more than 35 multi-brand used tractor
outlets in less than 6 months.
Manik began his career as an Analyst at KPMG
Advisory Services. He earned a B.Com (H) from Shri
Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) in Delhi and an
MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth,
USA.
Manik has conceptualized TractorGuru and
provides an overall vision to the company.
Even though TractorGuru was a late
entrant in the digital platform
space, Manik’s insights and
execution capabilities have
made it the 2nd largest
digital platform for Tractors
in India within a span of a
few months. Manik also
leads the Business
Development efforts and
TractorGuru has now
partnered with many
leading Tractor brands
in the country.
Manik Mital
Founder and CEO
March 2020 | 17www.insightssuccess.in

We believe that the mobile internet has enabled farmers in
India. Access to mobile internet reduces information
asymmetries, thus reducing the divide between large and
marginal farmers. Crucial information such as reliable
weather information, suitability and price of inputs
(including farm mechanization) and the prevailing price for
their output is easily available to everyone. TractorGuru
wants to be at the forefront of utilizing the mobile internet
to create a positive impact on the lives of Indian farmers.
Brief us about the future of the company or the goal it
has set to mark its exceptionality in future.
We are now entering the financing category. Tractor
financing is a big opportunity as more than 80% tractors
sold in India are financed by banks and NBFCs. We want to
assist in the activity and be the preferred platform for our
customers to access tractor financing.
We want to increase our participation in the used tractor
space. But it will be too early to share any specifics in this
regard. Watch this space !
One piece of advice for the budding entrepreneurs who
are trying to embark in the same field.
All we can say is ‘Keep Going’. There will be many
moments of doubt on your entrepreneurial journey. Keep
the focus on the customers and on solving the problem.
phone calls to customers.
In addition, we have full confidence in our team. We have a
very enthusiastic and capable team.
Please share some success stories, awards and accolades
that the company has received.
Since we are bootstrapped, our focus has been to build a
sustainable business model. For us, it is the small moments
which bring the most joy. I travel a lot to meet farmers and
dealers. I feel very happy when farmers and dealers tell me
about the impact our platform is creating. A tractor is a
high-ticket purchase for farmers and we are building
transparency and trust in the tractor buying process.
How does the company intend to give back to society?
We are focused on connecting farmers in India with the
farm machinery that is right for them. We exist to serve the
farming community to save their money, increase their
productivity, and reduce buying mistakes and downtime.
Through our used tractor services, we are creating
efficiency in the market and increasing access to
mechanization.
Share with us one latest development in agricultural
technology that will play a major role in helping the
Indian farmers and tackling the growing food demand.
Rahul Gawade
Co-Founder and Head -
Content and Operations
Rahul Upadhyay
Head – Marketing
Manik Mital
Founder and CEO

Aries Agro LimitedCreating Value for Farmers and all Stakeholders with Dedication and Innovation
Plants, we all know make their
own food under sunlight. The
roots, on the other end, draw up
minerals and essential nutrients from
the soil for proper growth. But with
time, the nutrient density in soil
reduces and needs human intervention
for the same. This ensures that the
produce is nutrient rich and hence help
humans and animals achieve proper
nutrition.
Established in 1969, Aries Agro
Limited is a company which has made
its mark in the business of
manufacturing of micro nutrients and
other customized nutritional products
for plants and animals. It started by
manufacturing a small range of mineral
feed additives for animals & birds and
then diversified into mineral additives
for the agriculture use.
Throughout the excerpts mentioned
below, the company shares its
impressive journey with us.
Kindly brief us about the company.
What prompted the founders to start
an agri-tech company and the initial
struggle?
Aries Agro Limited is an Indian
Multinational Company that offers the
widest range of products in the primary,
secondary and micro-fertilizer sector,
ranging from individual elements to
mixed specialty plant nutrient
fertilizers. Since 1969, we have
pioneered several innovative concepts
of farming to Indian agriculturists,
including the wonder of Chelation
Technology, bio-degradable complexes
of plant nutrients, water soluble NPK
fertilizers, value added secondary
nutrients, natural and biological
products and water treatment
formulations. Our products provide all
16 plant nutrients required in
agriculture, customized for the specific
needs of 107 different crops. Aries is
consistently recognized among India’s
best-in-class companies with 65 brands
in the niche plant nutrition industry
selling at 90,000 retail outlets across
India and also in 11 countries globally.
The founders, Dr. T. B. Mirchandani
and Mrs.Bala Mirchandani were a team
of marketing and technical experts in
the area of agri business. They
identified a gap in the specialty plant
nutrition segment which was untapped
at that point of time. They took the
harder but more profitable route of
discarding the commodity fertilizers
and selecting micronutrients and highly
customized plant nutrients as the area
of focus.
Tell us about the services you provide
through your venture.
Our Company provides a range of
products which are in the specialty
plant nutrition area and can be
segmented into; 1) Micronutrient
fertilizers and chelates 2) Water soluble
NPK fertilizers 3) Secondary plant
nutrition and soil conditioners 4)
Aquaculture and fishery nutrition 5)
Animal health supplements 6) Water
treatment and post harvest management
solutions. 7) Bactericides and plant
hormones
Please share some success stories,
awards and accolades that the
company has received.
We received Appreciation Certificate
from Bombay Chamber of Commerce
& Industry for Civic Award 2017 under
“Sustainable Environmental Initiatives’
Category and the highest independent
honour in India namely the ‘Skoch
Gold Award 2017’ for our consistent
work serving Indian farmers. We
received recognition with Skoch Order
of Merit - 2017 for being amongst the
top 100 SME’s in India. Also The
National Record awarded by Limca
Book of Records for the Largest Flash
Sale of Specialty Plant Nutrient
Products conducted during April 2016
at Bombay Stock Exchange,
International Convention Center,
Mumbai.
How does the company intend to give
back to the society?
The Company has, over the past few
years, focused on a range of
community activities which are as
follows:
Infrastructure support for Education:
Education for the girl child, language
labs for hearing impaired, construction
of washrooms/bathrooms for girl’s
schools, distributions of books,
educational kits, uniforms &
computers, provision of water tanks,
supply of benches etc
Scholarships: The Company also
provided fees and scholarships to
students and also awards to meritorious
students Farmers Call Centre: The
Company’s Call Centre based in
Vijayawada continued to provide
answers to farmer’s queries and
provided direct interaction with
consumers. In addition, the Company
has added call center numbers on all
literature and promotional materials
and is extending the reach of this call
center to other states across India.

Most
Recommended
AGRICULTURE
SOLUTION
PROVIDERSIn India-2020
Spreading Knowledge: Aries’ continues
to strongly advocate good agricultural
practices. Farmers’ meeting and
training programmes on good
agricultural practices are conducted at
various places across India. These
sessions are conducted by team of 138
extension officials spread across 26
states.
Well on wheels: In addition we are also
providing Aries “Well on Wheels”, a
device to assist the women in rural
areas to carry 45 litres of water using a
wheel barrow type of machine, rather
than carrying heavy loads on their head
across long distances.
Health Care: Ration kits and medicines
were distributed among flood affected
people in Gujarat, West Bengal and
Kerala.
Soil Testing Services: The Company
organizes soil testing camps using
Mobile Soil Testing Kits which analyse
10 parameters including pH, EC, NPK
levels in soil, micro nutrient levels
including Zinc, Ferrous, Boron,
Organic Carbon, etc. Soil Health Cards
are issued to farmers providing an
additional service in order that they
understand the specific nutrient needs
of their farms.
Share with us one latest development
in agricultural technology that will
play a major role in helping the
Indian farmers and tackling the
growing food demand.
Agricultural technology in the area of
plant nutrition using drones for
agricultural space (reducing labour cost
and time), use of cost effective inert
environmentally safe fertilizers (in
place of harmful chemical fertilizers)
and use of post harvest management
techniques (to reduce storage, transport
and climate stress)
Brief us about the future of the
company or the goal it has set to
Dr. Rahul Mirchandani joined Aries
Agro Limited in February 1995. Since
joining as p art of the market
development team, he has over the
past 23 years been instrumental in
expanding the Company’s presence
from 9 states to 26 states. He has been
attheforefronttolaunchnewproducts
every year to take the total to current
65 brands. He has overseen the use of
sensory branding for the first time in
Indian Animal Nutrition Products. He
made using water soluble packaging
for single dose packs of Aries flagship
brands to create a buzz in the market
apart from ensuring accurate dose and
reducing labour intervention. He has
helped in creating farmer celebrities by
providing platforms where Aries
farmers have interacted with US
President Obama, Netherlands Govt,
Niti Aayog, etc. and provided a
Showcase for how Aries products have
benefitted their field and added to
theirincomes.
ABOUT THE LEADERmark its exceptionality in future.
The future of Aries, which is
embarking on its golden jubilee year in
2019-20, is being charted using the
following focus areas
i) Deeper market penetration in the
Indian specialty plant nutrition segment
using the
Aries range of chelates and water
soluble fertilizers. ii) Wider reach in
every fertilizer consuming district of
India and Asian countries. iii)
Agricultural new products redesigned
using the best in class technologies to
further improve the effects of Aries
range of products.
One piece of advice for the budding
entrepreneurs who are trying to
embark in the same field.
The agri inputs segment is a high
growth but hyper competitive market
where finding a unique niche to provide
products and services which are
relevant to farmers needs is most
critical. Tenacity, agility and patience
will be the only ways that entrepreneurs
can ensure the success and survive in
this attractive market.
Dr. Rahul Mirchandani

ndia is expected to become the third-largest consumer
Imarket in the world after China and the US. New
technologies along with a rise in e-commerce,
urbanisation, changing lifestyles and increased personal
health awareness has accelerated the growth of the print and
packaging markets.
Print and packaging is the first thing that attracts
consumers-First moment of truth. This plays an important
role, especially in the consumer goods industry.
Packaging has turned out to be a necessary step for any
product-launching strategy irrespective of industry sectors.
Visually appealing graphics on packaging draws the
consumers to buy products whether offline or online.
Consumers mostly consider an attractive packaging for high
quality, thus premium products are often seen in more
consumer-friendly and attractive packaging with more
finishes. Thus, the print and packaging sectors have been
migrated into a new business opportunity. This includes
thousands of packaging companies, including raw material
suppliers and processing from designing and printing.
In India, the sector has been seeing constant growth with an
increase in packaged food consumption, awareness and
desire for quality products. The growth has been seen
throughout the supply chain either with packaging focused
design agencies or brands moving to use Packaging Brand
Management companies for their end to end services.
India continues to be the most preferred destination for
companies looking to offshore and it’s not just IT but also
packaging premedia and prepress services. Brand
management companies in the US, UK, Europe and
Australia started partnering with offshoring partners in
India to take advantage of low costs and time difference.
Larger brand management companies relied on acquisitions
to build a strong base in India. In the beginning, those were
only for offshoring and little were they interested in the
local market. The multinational FMCG companies at times
took their services, a few discontinued due to the high cost.
While some decided to stick to the traditional way of asking
the agencies to do the artworks adaptation and legal
changes and plate makers/ printers for prepress. Sooner or
later brand managers realised the importance of colour and
how the consistency of the same is important in shopper
decision making.
It has never been more important than in today’s digital
world of shopping where consumer scrolls rapidly through
multiple items and the brands are reliant on the instant
recognition of the brand colour / unique shape of the brand
to slow down the consumer to make it in their basket.
This has transitioned and given rise to packaging brand
management companies who offer support in both online
and offline packaging services. Right from artwork services,
prepress until ecommerce pack shots and agile contents for
digital shopping, these companies take care of everything.
Not just larger multinationals but even start-ups and
regional FMCG companies have started decoupling their
requirements and use these agencies for their Packaging
requirements. They have realised that onboarding a
specialised packaging partner will allow them to reduce the
THE RISE OF
PACKAGING BRAND
MANAGEMENT COMPANIES
IN INDIA

cost in the packaging supply chain, and maintain
visual consistency in all packages. It will also
control the appearance of brand assets reproduced
across all different printing processes and
substrates.
These Brand Management companies as well
have acknowledged the potential India possess
and have tailored their offerings to suit India’s
market. This will be done either in terms of prices
or offering be it Packshots for India specific
retailers like Walmart, Big basket and amazon or
creating an India specific mandate sheet for legal
meteorology.
Our Country is at a tipping point in terms of
growth in the economy or in terms of manpower
development. We are entering into a new era of
growth with the rise of such new specialised
domains and collaborative efforts to identify
improvements for today. We can predict solutions
to deliver in future shall be the answer to unlock
the full potential of who we are. This will push us
towards becoming the world’s largest consumer
market.
Vineeth A Viswanathan is
the Business Director at
SGSCO. He is a specialized
senior management
executive with experience in
delivering and sustaining
revenue. This has ultimately
made enough profit in highly
competitive B to B markets
especially in APAC , MEA and
European regions .
Vineeth is an Electronics and
Communication engineer. He
has vast experience in running a
business and consulting in
various technical and non
technical fields. These areas
include Computer aided design,
communications , App
development ,Trading and the
Advertising. He has been
providing these services across
14+ countries.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Editor’s View

Gram-Haat®Empowered, Rural India
I
st
n this day and age (21 Century), the
words of Gandhiji still hold a surreal
amount of significance. In this
rapidly changing world fueled by
globalization and digital transformation
taking place in the life of every citizen in
India, what matters the most is the
facilitation of services with ease of
availability. Real India resides in Tire-II
and beyond where particular products or
services are not procured on time.
Sometimes, it never reaches the desired
destination. This particularly is a
problem known as disconnect between
urban brands & rural market. Though,
there has been a subtle growth in the
infrastructural amenities of rural India, it
still hasn’t proved to be a proper solution
for the lack of facilitation of qualitative
goods and services. There is a
requirement for an efficient catalyst for
inclusive growth to bridge the existing
urban-rural divide with a commercially
viable solution. That’s where Gram-
Haat® comes into the picture.
Gram-Haat® is a widespread rural retail
outlet serving five hundred million
Indians through more than fifty most
valued brands and start-ups. These
brands are from different sectors like
Agriculture, Finance, Household, and
Personal care. In brief, it is connecting
urban brands with rural consumers and
businesses. Gram-Haat®, the eRMPL
Technologies LLP Rural Retail initiative
is addressing the (4A) challenges of the
rural segment of India. These challenges
are Awareness, Acceptance, Affordability,
and Availability.
The Purpose
Gram-Haat®’s Assets Light Technology-
based bricks and mortar setup operates in
Tire-2 towns and beyond serving a rural
market for their daily needs of Products,
Services, and Consultancy offerings.
Gram-Haat® serves approx. 40 million
of the Indian population today with more
than 14000 PoS/IT equipped outlets all
over the Western India. Now the
company is aiming to reach 150 million
of the customer bases from 45000+
outlets by 2021 across India.
The company has been working with the
principle to fuel the entrepreneurial spirit
amongst the youth in the rural areas of
India. Gram-Haat® presents the rural
youth with an opportunity of self-
employment who have the minimum
educational qualification (10th Pass),
basic knowledge of IT, and an inclination
towards business and entrepreneurship.
“We not only provide them with an
earning opportunity but also increase
their capability to serve rural citizens in
various modes,” says the team of Gram-
Haat®.
This rural empowerer is connecting
urban brands to the rural areas of the
country at the most affordable cost along
with out-reach and logistics. All of this in
order to create an actual social and
economic impact on the life of the people
where the real India resides. “We take an
opportunity to share credits with our
mentor Mr. Amit Varma (Ex. President
RIL) who taught us Out-reach,” shares
the team of Gram-Haat®.
The Inception Story
It all started when Mr. Sanket Jasmin
Desai, the Designated Director of
Gram-Haat® was working for a
corporate firm during 2004-14. He
travelled to more than 15000 Tire II and
III towns and villages for research &
analysis, set-up of Fuel outlets and
digitalization of Govt set-ups. He
realized that even with the growth of
infrastructure and digital connectivity,
people for their various needs are still
traveling 25-35 km or paying a premium
price for commodities with
compromising its assured quality from
various urban brands. There was a need
for a two-sided value proportionate
solution for this situation. That’s how
Gram-Haat® emerged as the bridge to
rural demands and urban brands’
offerings as the most viable solution.
Aim was to cater the need. It took almost
two years for the pilot to create
company-operated franchise models
(CoFos) in Western India alone.
The firm was founded with the help of
friends & ex-colleagues from Rural and
Retail Industry. It has Advisory Board
members from Agronomy, Insurance,
Banking, Telecom, e-Market Space,
Education, e-Governance, and
Hospitality verticals to empower Gram-
Haat®’s initiative. In a brief comment,
the experts disclose, “All of us have a
high level of synergy to build the best
solutions for rural India.”“Together we
continue to effectively innovate, operate
and market Gram-Haat®,” adds Mr.
Sanket. This initiative is operationally
supported by sister companies like
SdMC and Kanan Solutions and
functionally by the parent company,
eRMPL Group.
Industry Dynamics and Recognitions
There are two large infrastructural setups
in the rural areas of the country namely,
India-Post and Panchayat Office. For any
“I would say that if the village
perishes, India will perish too. India
will no longer remain India. Its own
mission in the world will get
misplaced. The revival of the villages
in the country is only possible, when it
is no longer exploited.”
- Mahatma Gandhi (Harijan,
29.08.1936)

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Start-up, scale the biggest challenge;
team who counts number it was foremost
task to touch large set of beneficiaries. To
make the asset-light model resonate with
public engagement, eRMPL is operating
Gram-Haat® from every single Gram
panchayat building/office I the state of
Gujarat on margin sharing basis. “We
call it Rurban movement with business
model CoFo which enables the urban
brands to have a tie-up with the company
in order to promote, market, and sell
their products/services/consultation in
the rural trade space of India,” shares
Mr. Sanket.
Gram-Haat® operators are continuously
trained on digital services, product
marketing and sales roles by associated
business partners and trainers. IT
equipped with connectivity outlet serves
online as well as pre-sales activities are
done through events and promotions at
the village level. The organization
contributes approx. 42% of digital
transactions for Gujarat from various
Financial Inclusion initiatives such as
AePS Payments, Money Remittance,
Bharat Bill Pay, Recharges, Mutual
Funds, Insurance, etc. Wide range of
products offered from Tractor to Non-
Electricy Water purifiers, etc. The
company’s single largest platform where
at no cost, any brand or start-up can
reach more than 40 million beneficiaries
and create own market space through
Gram-Haat®. “We look forward to the
association with Corporates, Semi-
Government Organisation and NGOs,”
states Mr. Sanket. eRMPL is Rural
Technology and Innovation continuum.
Gram-Haat® was awarded Grant &
Recognition as the Top 20 Start-ups by
CIIE and IIM-A at The Power of Idea.
Also, Mr. Sanket got selected for the
Fellowship program by the Royal
Academy of Engineering, London for the
said project. Continuing the march,
eRMPL Technologies LLP inked MoU
with State Government of Gujarat during
Vibrant Gujarat Summit 2017 for rolling-
out B2B, B2C, and G2C support services
at 14000 Gram-Panchayats of the
State. The company is recognized as
a Start-up by DIPP – Govt of India,
Committed to Empowered India.
A Vision Ahead
Gram-Haat® through its ‘Click and
Sale’ model is helping the villagers
follow the mantra of ‘Zero
Investment, No Warehouse’ which
has been proposed by the firm.
Through this preposition, the
company is enabling technology for
the villagers in seamless manner. It
is facilitating human touch and
trained local residents for quick
response service with Adhaar and
UPI enabled digital transactions.
The firm is providing various
facilities through its junctures such
as, viable and sustainable model for
Gram-Panchayats and offering under
principal agency code/authorization. The
products and services offered under
Gram-Haat®’s initiative include proper
tie-up or agreement which helps to serve
the customers in a better way. The
organization does not follow the
principle of ‘Sale and Forget,’ it intends
to provide full support during the service
period of the clients which properly
aligns with Gram-Haat®’s exclusive
product team’s efforts. There is a
complete support mechanism available in
terms of online and offline mode for
customers as well as agents working with
the firm.
The company is focused on to create
more outlets that will reach people on a
higher volume. It is also planning to
increase more associations with Industry
leaders having digital platforms to
promote or sell products/services. Gram-
Haat® is also on its way to create
awareness and space in rural markets
with the help of other institutes such as
tele-medicine centers, data management
firms, e-learning companies and NGOs.
Dr. Rahul Mirchandani
First Green
Revolution,
then White
Revolution,
and now it
is time for
the Orange
(Digital)
Revolution
through
Gram-Haat®
“
“
Sanket Jasmin Desai
Designated Director

Ross Lifescience Private
LimitedUpholding a Decade Long Legacy of Excellence and Innovation
Each organism has its own
role in maintaining the
ecosystem on this planet.
Insects for example are needed for
seed dispersal, pollination and more.
However, in terms of agriculture not
all insects are helpful. With science’s
help, it is possible to control and
even eliminate some of tem to help
protect crop.
Situated at Pimpri-Chinchwad,
Maharashtra, Ross Lifescience
Private Limited offers innovative
and sustainable products that suit the
customer’s need in the areas of
integrated pest management,
household and body care,
environmental sciences and so on. In
an interview with the Insights
Success, the company’s
spokesperson sheds light on its
impressive journey, various offering,
and its future plans.
Kindly brief us about the company.
What prompted the founders to
start an Agriculture Solution
provider and the initial struggle?
Ross Lifescience Private Limited is
a contract research organization
based in Pune, India and has been
operating for more than 10 years
now. The name is also a tribute to
nobel laureate Sir Ronald Ross, who
discovered how malaria is
transmitted from mosquitoes to man.
We are engaged in product
development and analytical services
(chemistry, Bioefficacy and
Ecotoxicity) including registration
data generation related to Integrated
Pest Management (IPM) which
involves crop protection, public
health, and house hold insecticides
and veterinary ecto-parasiticides.
Ross Lifescience has expert and
experienced staff comprising of
Analytical chemists, Entomologists
and Toxicologists coupled with state
of the art infrastructure laboratory
equipped with sophisticated
instruments for conducting product
development and analytical studies
assisted by advisory panel of repute.
Brief us about the Founder/CEO of
the company and the major
contribution of him/ her towards
the development of the company.
Our company marches ahead towards
excellence under the ardent
leadership of the four founding
members, Dr. Kedar Deobhankar –
CEO; Dr. Swati Vitonde – Director
– Finance & HR; Mr. Nitin
Ghatpande – Director – Business
Development; and Dr. Deepak Phal
– Director – Technical Services.
The dedicated efforts of these four
spearheads have led the company to
what it is today.
Tell us about the services you
provide through your venture.
We engage in new product
development and data generation for
registration purposes and evaluating
product performance especially
related to Agrochemicals, Vector
control and Household insecticides.
The main scope of activity, though, is
registration data generation for new
molecules and formulations that
would enable our clients to introduce
the product quickly into the market.
Below are some of the services that
we offer:
• Chemistry (Physical and Chemical
properties) including 5 batch
analysis
• Stability studies (accelerated and
real-life study in different
agroclimatic conditions)
• Residue and Persistency studies in
soil, water and plant
• Ecotoxicity studies as per OECD
guidelines
• Entomological studies (Lab and
field trials)
• Field trials for evaluating product
performance against target pests for
Agrochemicals, Vector control and
Household insecticides.
• Field trials for studying impact of

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SOLUTION
formulations on aquatic flora and
fauna
• Product and Packaging
Development
• Conducting pre-registration and
post registration clinical trials for
insecticide products
Please share some success stories,
awards and accolades that the
company has received.
Our company was incepted in the
year 2008 and owing to our
dedicated endeavors, we received the
ISO 9001 (2008) certification in the
year 2010. In the same year, we also
received the ISBA Entrepreneurship
Award. Our dedicated endeavors led
our company to receive the ISO
17025 (NABL) certification.
Eventually, we received the DSIR
Certification (2013), and the
CIB&RC and GLP approvals in the
years 2015 and 2017 respectively.
How does the company intend to
give back to the society?
Ross Lifescience is actively involved
in imparting technical knowledge to
the students of nearby colleges and
regularly conducts summer training
programs in analytical chemistry and
entomology to college students. We
also conduct training programs for
safe use and handling of insecticides
to professional pest control operators.
Our company is also engaged in CSR
program and conducts activities in
the field of mosquito borne diseases
for benefit to the community.
What are the latest technologies
that you use to deliver your
services?
Ross is a GLP certified and ISO
17025 accredited laboratory. We have
state-of-the art facility for
entomology with peet grady
chambers, room chambers with air
exchange facility, in-house
developed automatic timely delivery
and monitoring systems for spray and
knock down. Whereas, talking about
analytical instrumentation strength,
we have instruments UpToDate to
match the contemporary
technological needs of our projects.
We have GC-MS, Tandem MS,
Headspace GC-MS, HPLC, LC-MS
to name a few.
We have a competent and expert
QAU department that has in place a
robust audit program to check that
the systems and processes comply to
the guidelines of Good Laboratory
Practices enabling timely and quality
delivery of services leading to
customer satisfaction.
Brief us about the future of the
company or the goal it has set to
mark its exceptionality in future.
Our company has posted a healthy
growth of around 30% Y-O-Y from
its inception in 2008. The vision of
Ross Lifescience is to be ‘a leading
contract research organization for
creating, innovative, customer
focussed solution that offer cutting
edge technology in the field of
Integrated Pest Management.’
With the above vision, our endeavor
is to add new techniques especially
related to cell assays that would help
accurate and quicker toxicological
assessment of product without using
experimental animals. Presently, our
efforts are directed towards adding e-
fate studies to complement existing
activities and enhancing
infrastructure to accommodate state
of the art analytical equipment.
One piece of advice for the
budding entrepreneurs who are
trying to embark in the same field.
Have faith in yourself and give your
best with utmost honesty. At the
beginning, things may look difficult
but never say die attitude and
persistent efforts in right direction
would lead you to success.
Dr. Kedar Deobhankar – CEO; Dr. Swati Vitonde – Director –
Finance & HR; Mr. Nitin Ghatpande – Director – Business
Development; and Dr. Deepak Phal – Director – Technical Services

6
Benefits of
ORGANIC
FARMINGOVER CONVENTIONAL FARMING

O
rganic farming indeed has upgraded the farming game. It has been considered as the
best alternative against conventional farming that uses all sorts of chemicals and
pesticidesinitsprocess.Togiveaninsightintothebeneﬁtsoforganicfarming,wehave
listeddown6beneﬁtsoforganicfarming:
Editor’s Choice

It has been seen that conventional farming makes use of fungicides,
herbicides, and insecticides that are harmful to both humans as well as
other living and non-living organisms. However, organic farming does
the exact opposite and uses techniques that use natural ingredients to
ﬁght the problems faced during farming
1. No Chemicals
Another major issue regarding conventional farming is that it is harmful
to the environment. Over the years, due to the overuse of chemicals,
the soil quality has been reduced. This results in a reduction in the
microbiota of rhizobium which helps in proper growth of plants. Apart
from this, the groundwater also gets contaminated as these chemicals
seep down. On the other hand, as there is negligible use of chemicals in
organic farming, it helps save the environment.
2. Helps in Environment Conservation
Apart from plants and vegetables, even animals are given antibiotics
and harmful hormonal injections for their growth. This eventually
hampers the life span of these animals. Also, it is said that consumption
of such meat or its products harms the health of people. However,
people now have started moving to breed animals organically. This
includes, animals are left to reproduce naturally, no use of external
growth hormones and so on.
3. Free from Animal Cruelty

As the fruits, plants, meat and other products are grown through a
natural process, the chances of retaining the nutrients are quite high.
The shelf life of these items increases as these items stay fresher for a
longer time. Hence, organic farming ultimately helps us maintain a
better and healthier life.
4. Fresh and Nutrient-Rich
Genetically Modiﬁed Organisms (GMOs) or genetically engineered
(GE) foods are plants whose DNA has been altered. These are altered
in such ways that cannot occur in nature or traditional crossbreeding.
Genetic engineering has been practiced due to the mere reason that
these plants are resistant to pesticides and insecticides. However,
organic farming is free from GMOs. This means that farmers use
original species of crops, seeds particularly. There is a strict NO policy
for GMO seeds and plants while farming.
5. Free from GMO
Last but not the least, organic farming can be cost-effective if used
properly. Use of prescribed natural ingredients can reduce the cost
drastically. These include microbial, plant based and many other natural
ingredients. To name a few, neem based products, salt spray, organic
oils and more. On the other hand, organic products have a higher value
in the market that actually beneﬁts the farmers and the farming
community.
6. Cost-Effective

Swasti AgroA Farmer-Centric Social Venture
The Indian economy was largely dependent on
agriculture until industrialization and
globalization created an impact and changed
the balance. While agriculture is still a major part of
the economy and culture, the gradual shift is evident
and increasing. Agriculture is critical, and the
growing population to be fed keeps increasing the
pressure, but the sector is facing a major crisis.
Depleting soil productivity, shrinking farmlands,
dwindling labour, low profits are just some of the
reasons for the growing unrest in the sector and
farmers. These are giving rise to another national
catastrophe, farmer suicide, which have been in the
news since the 1990s and increasing. Latest reports
suggest that on an average there are 10 cases of
farmer suicides every day? While a lot is being done
and said about it, the problem persists and the
solution lies in changing the way the problem is
being approached.
Solutions are All About the Right Approach
Proactive measures that revolve around the problems
bringing on the crisis need to be taken with a farmer-
centric approach. Pune-based Swasti Agro and
Bioproducts Pvt Ltd believes that the majority of
the problems of the farmers can be solved if the
ecosystem adopts a farmer-centric approach and is
working its part on it. As per the company, a big
concern all over the globe is that affordability of
farming activity is diminishing day by day. One
single factor that can change this scenario is the
mitigation of diseases of crops. Farmers do not have
effective tools to prevent diseases of crops and they
lose on an average of about 30% of the crop year on
year. And if the season is bad this risk increases to
over 90%. With a process loss risk of 30 -90%, any
activity is deemed to be unsuccessful. A true farmer-
centric approach requires products, services, and
channels to evolve mechanism(s) that maximize the
profitability of individual unorganized farmers spread
out across the country.
“Our vision is to
eradicate Food
security crisis
arising around
the globe with
healthy organic
technology”
Dr. Abhay Shendye
Founder, CEO
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Swasti’s Solutions
Swasti is a farmer-centric social
venture developing innovative
sustainable inputs, processes and
channels. Swasti has developed
products for the prevention of crop
diseases. It also provides analysis
based advice to farmers so that they
can take learned decisions and save
costs as well as crops. Several farmers
in Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Gujarat
have been using these products for the
last 3 – 5 years. The company is now
spreading its wings to Bihar and Nepal
and has recently started its subsidiary
in East Africa. Swasti’s technology is
being patented in India as well as
Africa.
The first product Swasti brought out
was for prevention of bacterial blight
of pomegranate. The farmers who
coupled the use of preventive products
with proper nutrition management
could control the expression of this
deadly disease very successfully.
Swasti has developed crop planning
schedule for pomegranate based on
climate, and advisory on nutrition and
disease management. Now it has
products for the prevention of diseases
of vegetables caused by fungi, bacteria,
and nematodes. Not only the products
prevent diseases, but also promote the
growth of plants thereby improving the
productivity and profitability. Swasti’s
products broadly fall into the following
categories:
Agriculture/Horticulture
Kitchen Garden
Aquarium
Aquaponics/Hydroponics
Where the Grass
is truly Greener –
Advantage
Swasti
Prevention of
diseases due to
Swasti’s products
results in farmers
getting more yield.
Moreover, the
production is
eco-friendly and uses a few toxic
chemicals. Thus farmers – particularly
those who can export the residue-free
produce – are getting better rates for
the produce. While assessing the
prevalent condition in a particular
farmer’s field the company advises the
exact dosage of products even at the
cost of losing some sale. Even if the
suggested solution or product is
unavailable with Swasti, it suggests
other brand products that would work
well as per the analysis. It runs two
special programs too:
l Swasti’s three-pronged program
“BioAvert I” gives preventive
solutions in the form of blocking
pathogen entry, increasing
beneficial microbes and
stimulating plant defense
mechanism.
l The “HiFarm” services provide
advise based on – Hyperspectral
imaging, Field analysis techniques,
root zone analysis and microscopy.
As a bonus, all of Swasti’s products are
certified organic products – perfectly
safe for humans, environment, and
therefore can provide higher rates for
the produce. This helps in generating a
better return on investment for the
farmers.
Re-fabricating the Social Structure
Swasti believes in dedicated R&D to
develop products that create multiple
impacts and strengthen the social
fabric of the agrarian society. Recently,
while commercializing the products for
disease prevention, it conducted
research on the nutrition of crops and
particularly efficient and effective
delivery of micronutrients. This
patented product, during
manufacturing, requires a waste
material – ‘biogas slurry’ – from
farmers. This new product is already
making a huge impact on dairy and
agriculture. Because of the win-win
“We want to
empower farmers
by giving them the
ability to mitigate
risk by preventing
crop diseases”

situation, farmers, as well as dairies,
are interested in the processing. This
improves the profitability for the dairy
farmer, almost by three times, when
compared with the selling of milk
alone. Dairy cooperatives together can
reach 70% of farmers in India. Each
small farmer having 2 – 3 animals can
get extra income up to Rs 6000 per
month.
This also creates an opportunity for
backward integration. When the dairy
cooperative unit also engages itself in
the backward integration and takes the
product back to farmers, it will help
many more farmers by providing a
quality product at a reasonable cost.
Swasti plans to support such backward
integration activity with analysis based
advice service for their farmers. Such
an innovative farmer-centric channel
will ensure that the money is generated
and circulated within the farming
community. Swasti trusts that this
channel will establish very quickly and
spread fast across the length and
breadth of India, and
deliver products for
nutrition, disease
prevention and many
more other
categories; strictly to be deployed
based on learned advice. When this is
achieved, Swasti believes it would
have given back to the farming
community, the support that was much
desired.
Research – The Foundation
Creating a comprehensive farmer-
centric approach isn’t a one-man task,
to begin with. While Dr Abhay
Shendye, the founder of Swasti,
started his journey towards inculcating
farmer-centric approach in each
employee and activity of the company,
it took the backing from institutions,
and buyers to realize the potential. Dr
Abhay has been the backbone of the
technology development and
organization culture at Swasti. As a
child, he would visit his grandfather’s
fields and help milk cows or sow rice.
This childhood activity led to a
passionate love for agriculture that he
later channeled into his company,
Swasti. Under his guidance, the
company has also developed an
Android application ‘Happy Crop’ to
support the implementation of plant
healthcare.
More to Come
Swasti has been bestowed with several
awards such as BIG and SBIRI
(BIRAC). IIGP (DST), and
Millennium Alliance (FICCI –USAID
and DFID) have been a huge support
for product development. Now the
company is considering a different set
of institutions as its partners to build
unique backward integration channels.
Besides institutional support, Swasti –
as a team – has overcome difficult
times with the support from friends,
and family. Dr Abhay advises, “Any
young entrepreneur who wants to
venture in the agriculture sector should
keep it in mind that the picture looks
rosy, but meeting the two ends month
on month is a daunting task. You need
to have immense patience to even make
a visible dent.”
“Our specific focus is
prevention of diseases of
crops, and point of care
preventive diagnosis”

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