IIT Madras and Agriculture Ministry Collaborate on Project VISTAAR to Empower Indian Agriculture

IIT Madras collaborates with the Ministry of Agriculture on Project VISTAAR to boost farmer productivity, efficiency, and market access through innovative technologies.

IIT Madras and Agriculture Ministry Collaborate

The Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) is collaborating with the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India, on Project VISTAAR (Virtually Integrated System to Access Agricultural Resources). This pilot initiative aims to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the agricultural extension system through digitalisation, further strengthening support for farmers nationwide.

Start-ups are renowned for their innovation and ability to leverage technology to introduce new products and services. In the agricultural sector, they have unique opportunities to address both supply and demand challenges. Their technologies and innovations can enhance efficiency and productivity in farming and allied sectors while also providing farmers with valuable market insights. The Centre for Research on Start-ups and Risk Financing at IIT Madras along with its incubated start-up YNOS Venture Engine have developed the most comprehensive information on the Indian start-up landscape.

The recent MoU between the Agriculture Ministry and IIT Madras aims to enhance the VISTAAR platform by integrating information about start-ups in agriculture and allied sectors. This will enable farmers and other stakeholders to better understand start-ups' capabilities and offerings, making them more accessible and impactful.

Highlighting the importance of this collaboration, Prof. Thillai Rajan A., Head, Centre for Research on Start-up, IIT Madras, said, “Agriculture forms the backbone of India’s social and economic rubric. Ensuring a strong agriculture sector therefore becomes a major policy imperative. Start-ups have an important role to play in bringing innovation across the value chain in the agriculture and allied sectors.”

Further, Prof. Thillai Rajan A., also a faculty in the Department of Management Studies, IIT Madras, added, “The Start-up information platform developed by the Centre for Research on Start-ups and Risk Financing at IIT Madras along with its incubatee start-up YNOS Venture Engine has information about 12,000 start-ups that are connected to the agriculture and farming sectors. This collaboration would bring this rich information within the easy reach of the farmer and contribute to the effectiveness of extension services of the Department of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare significantly.”

Further, Samuel Praveen Kumar, Joint Secretary (Extension), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, said, “Innovative technologies of Agri Start-ups contribute towards making Agriculture sustainable and climate resilient and therefore connecting the technology of Agri startups with farmers through Extension is critical from an access and adoption perspective and the collaboration with IITM would surely pave way for achieving this objective through VISTAAR DPI for Agriculture Extension.”

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