Agriculture Grand Challenges
Agriculture Grand Challenges (AGC) is a flagship initiative by the Agri Centre of Excellence at C-CAMP. It is a competitive call that aims to identify and support innovative, deep-science solutions to address critical challenges in Indian agriculture. AGC enables startups to solve sector-specific, farmer-first problems in agriculture using cutting-edge science and technology. Each cohort focuses on curated problem statements.
The program has evolved over three editions (AGC-1, AGC-2, and AGC-3), each time focusing on different problem statements and expanding its scope to include allied sectors such as animal husbandry and dairy farming.
Overview of the AGC Process
The AGC process is designed to identify and support startups with innovative solutions to pressing agricultural problems. The process involves the following key steps:
- Problem Identification
- Call for Applications
- Screening and Selection
- Funding and Support
Scope of Support for Selected Startups
Selected startups will receive the following support:
- Funding: Up to ₹50 lakh per startup (equity-based funding).
- Mentorship & Networking: Guidance from leading agricultural experts and industry stakeholders.
- Field Trials & Validation: Deployment support through partnerships with agricultural institutions.
- Infrastructure & Resources: Access to cutting-edge research labs, testing facilities, and industry collaboration, along with funding, mentorship and validation support.
Evaluation Parameters for Startups
Startups are evaluated based on the following parameters:
- Innovation: Novelty, creativity of the solution, and IP potential.
- Feasibility: Practicality of implementation in diverse agricultural contexts.
- Impact: Potential benefits to farmers, the environment, and the agricultural ecosystem.
- Scalability: Ability to expand solutions to other regions or crops.
- Deployment Readiness: Progress towards an MVP or pilot deployment.
Eligibility Criteria:
- Indian startups (registered in India, less than 10 years old, and with 51% or more Indian ownership).
- International startups must collaborate with Indian organizations or provide solutions adaptable to India.
- The proposed solution must be deep-tech or science-based and aligned with one of the problem statements.
Three Editions of Agriculture Grand Challenges:
- AGC-1 (Launched on July 23, 2021)
It was launched by the then Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka, Dr. Ashwath Narayan.
Three key problem statements were identified:
- A quick, accurate, and affordable POC method for testing macro/micro-nutrients in soil and plant tissue, and microbial diversity in soil.
- Technology to increase the shelf life of produce and minimize post-harvest losses.
- A technology for the detection and treatment of white stem borer infestation in coffee.
Startups Selected: 4 startups were selected to address these problem statements (Detailed information in the Cohort 1 Section)
- AGC-2 (Launched on December 1, 2023)
It was launched by Priyank Kharge, Hon’ble Minister, IT & BT, Govt. of Karanataka at the Bengaluru Tech Summit. AGC-2 expanded its scope to include agriculture and allied sectors such as animal husbandry.
Problem Statements: Seven problem statements were identified covering agriculture and animal husbandry:
- Technology To Increase Shelf Life and Minimize Post Harvest Losses
- Technologies For Plant Pest and Disease Detection, Monitoring and Mitigation.
- Target Crops: Tomato, Pomegranate, Cotton, & Coffee
- Technology For On-site Drying and Grading of Cash Crops
- Novel Artificial Insemination Techniques for Cattle (For Enhanced Fertilization Rates)
- Cost-effective On-farm Pregnancy Detection Kits for Cattle to Detect PAB/AGA/Other
- Hormones
- Affordable Farmer-level Mastitis Detection
- Fast And Accurate Method for Detection of Contaminants in Milk
Startups Selected: Five startups were selected to address these problem statements (Detailed information in the Cohort 2 Section)
- AGC-3 (Launched on February 20, 2025)
AGC-3 was officially launched by the Hon'ble Minister for IT, BT, and Rural Development, Shri Priyank Kharge, and the Hon'ble Minister of Agriculture, Shri N. Cheluvarayaswamy.
Ten high-priority problem statements were identified, focusing on climate-resilient agriculture, precision farming, and disease detection:
- Biodegradable and affordable plastic mulching alternatives.
- Yellow leaf disease detection and control in arecanut.
- Precision weeding technology for small farms.
- Detection of contamination and adulteration in perishables.
- Real-time disease monitoring in fish farming and poultry.
- Early warning system for spike disease in sandalwood.
- Drought-resistant and disease-resistant crop varieties.
- Precision nutrient and water management for dryland farming and paddy cultivation.
- Disease detection and climate-resilient technologies for red gram.
- Improved harvesting, drying, sorting, and grading technologies for cash crops.
To know more, get in touch with us at: agri@ccamp.res.in
C-CAMP Agri Grand Challenge Awardees
Klonec Automation Systems Pvt Ltd is an Agri-tech start-up specializing in soil technology, farm data acquisition and related cloud services by building disruptive solutions for soil analysis using cutting-edge technologies. Operating under the brand ‘Krishitantra’, their objective of the solution is to encourage balanced application of fertilizers leading to higher farmer income, soil rejuvenation, savings on irrigation water, reducing water contamination and greenhouse gases, etc. The IOT based indigenously developed products - KrishiRASTAA and KrishiJEEVAN - when utilized in soil testing and agronomy advice on balanced application of fertilizers.
Current Status: Currently, their products are used in domestic and international markets as well. Within India, they are present across 18 states with 2000+ installations. They cater to retail, enterprise and government segments, including FPOs, VLEs, Foundations, Agri-service providers, fertilizer manufacturers, supply-chain companies & aggregators, food processing industries, contract farming institutions, and organisations in FMCG products. Krishitantra is appointed by Govt of India to handle the ‘soil health card’ portal and digitize the end to end soil testing from soil collection to data generation.
Website: https://krishitantra.com/
Papyrus Diagnostics Pvt Ltd
Papyrus Diagnostics is an early-stage start-up incubated at Society of Innovation and Development at Indian institute of Science, Bangalore. The company is a spin-off from Dr. Bhushan Toley’s lab at IISc. Papyrus Diagnostics work in the domain of Agri-tech and infectious disease diagnostics. Papyrus provides a patented portable soil testing device with an USP ‘single step disposable test’. The device fits inside a palm and is robust to all common weather conditions. The technology has been demonstrated for one of the three analytes that’s proposed. The device has 2X accuracy and gives result in 3-5mins.
Current Status: Papyrus is conducting quick validation for the assay and exploring opportunities for validation with potential customers. They are validating their product in the hydroponics sector. In addition to device development, they are also focusing on developing a software interface that will serve as a seamless mediator between the product and end customers.
Website: https://www.papyrusdx.com/
Navork Innovations Pvt Ltd
Navork is a spin-off from IIT Delhi currently incubated at SINE IIT Bombay, developing solutions derived from plants to extend the shelf life of fruits and vegetables and reduce post-harvest losses.
Navork takes a multifaceted approach to take care of all parameters causing deterioration of shelf life. A Unique solution derived from plants keeps the moisture in and keeps oxygen out with the help of hydrophobic material from plants peel. They use an extract from Soy that has reduced enzymatic activity and cinnamon extract that reduces the microbial load. The plant extract when dipped or sprayed on fruits and vegetables increases their shelf life by over 2.5x as it takes care of all aspects of post-harvest losses.
Current Status: Navork has commercialized the technology for improving the quality and shelf life of mushrooms. Along with clearing the regulatory FSSAI license and safety certifications for the product, they have validated the product from ICAR and several mushroom farms in the country. Navrok’s product is established and is being used repeatedly by customers. Navork is helping to reduce the ‘cap opening’ of mushrooms by 90% as per farms and improved quality and shelf life is fetching them 10-15 rupees extra per kg of mushroom at farms. The product is currently commercialized in five states of India.
Website: https://navork.com/
Ekosight Technologies Pvt Ltd
Ekosight is developing AI-powered soil testing and fertilizer recommendation device that solves the problem of complex, delayed and costly soil testing process for agricultural society and provides them point-of-care timely service at less cost with precise fertilizer recommendations. with state-of-the-art AI-powered actionable recommendations services. With the vision of becoming a Google map for providing soil data to all the Agri service providers and farmers, Ekosight is working on a mission of providing accurate soil data to Agri communities.
Current Status: Ekosight has successfully completed a paid pilot program in Punjab. Ekosight has deployed 10 devices across 20 districts and is conducting comprehensive soil tests on over 1,500 samples. With Ekosight’s recommendation, a per-sample charge of INR 180 for the six parameters is charged. Farmers can make informed decisions based on reliable soil data. The impact has been remarkable, with a 20% increase in yield and a 30% reduction in input costs reported by farmers.
Website: https://www.ekosight.com/
