Budget may provide funds to encourage agri startups

The government is likely to allocate funds to provide lowinterest loans and tax incentives to encourage startups in the agricultural sector in the upcoming budget. It will support startups in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), remote sensing, big data, block chain, internet of things (IoT), Geographic Information System (GIS) technology, and the usage of drones and robots to transform the agricultural sector.

“These agritech startups can build a more resilient agricultural ecosystem, support farmers with small holdings and impart knowledge about best practices. Therefore, they need to be encouraged,” said a senior government official without wanting to be identified.

The government will also focus on creating policies to provide attractive incentives to build facilities, such as micro cold storage to address supply chain issues like lack of proper storage infrastructure, inadequate logistics, high levels of wastage, said the official quoted above. The move is a part of the government’s push to modernise agriculture and allied sectors to increase yield, quality, efficiency and profitability, he added.

The centre has already funded about 800 startups with an amount of Rs 118.65 crore under the Innovation and Agri-entrepreneurship Development Programme component of the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) to fuel innovation in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), internet of things (IoT), information and communication technology (ICT) and blockchain technology in the agriculture sector