How NKOSH, a Phygital agritech firm, is revolutionising farming practises in rural areas of India (Nutrikosh)
Nkosh is a technology-driven platform that gives farmers, micro, small, and medium-sized businesses, as well as producer organisations, access to large B2B and B2C market sectors. The upstream and downstream sides of India's agricultural value chain are both covered by the comprehensive set of solutions and services provided by our full-stack universal platform.
Because of COVID and COVID-induced lockdowns, each of us had to reevaluate our priorities as though we had never done so before. When small and marginal farmers struggled to sell their produce in a fragmented, unorganised market with information asymmetries larger than any other sector, it came as a grim reality-check for Ashutosh Tiwari, the founder-CEO of NKosh and a quintessential farmer's son from the Himalayan regions of Uttarakhand. This drew them to the brink of devastation, which is what inspired Ashutosh Tiwar
About 58% of India's population relies on agriculture as their major means of subsistence, despite the sector's continued contribution of less than 20% to the country's GDP. Small farmers in particular do not view it as a job that is financially rewarding for them. The widespread departure of younger people from farming activities underscores the need for different stakeholders to find solutions to the challenges faced by our 'Anna-dataas,' and who better to accomplish this than a farmer's son? Ashutosh, who grew up to work in multinational corporations on agri-value chains, never stopped thinking about agriculture and the problems that plague it, even after he left the industry. However, the difficulties that were inflicted on him by COVID were most certainly a catalyst when he started losing sleep over the numerous issues that are plaguing the agri-value chain.
Rising of NKosh (Nutrikosh)
Ashutosh kept comparing notes with other young people who had the same level of ambition and drive as him, such as Rahul Saini, Alok Chaudhary, Bhupendra Chauhan, and Anand Mahto. Eventually, NKosh was born with a "what if" moment: "what If the main stakeholders, such as small and marginal farmers, as well as the input retailers in Agri-businesses get all the relevant information on both the input and output side in
Nkosh is a full stack, one-stop AgriTech platform that enables farmers, MSMEs, and buyers to access services and solutions for their agribusinesses by utilising a hybrid PHYGITAL (physical + digital) approach. Nkosh was created by bringing together a team of industry experts.
Ashutosh looks back on the experience with fondness, saying, "We started to work on the idea, developed additional ground links with farmers, rural MSMEs, SHGs, FPOs, etc.; and built the product around the value chain." We were accepted into the RKVY- Raftaar programme run by the Ministry of Agriculture, and we were also accepted into the acceleration cohort run by IIM Kashipur, both of which assisted us in honing our solution. Through our consulting services, we have currently increased the income of 3,300 farmers, 15 micro, small, and medium enterprises, and 12 nonprofit organisations in the states of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
Ashutosh says the following in reference to the NKosh model: "Our PHYGITAL model is more appropriate for the Indian rural landscape." [Citation needed] Ongoing, in-depth engagement is provided with farmers who are located inside the last mile via our hub-and-spoke network of physical centres called Krishi Saarthi Kendras, which are overseen by Krishi Saarthis who are located within the villages. Through the use of our digital platform, we are able to assist in the transparent organisation of productivity, services, solutions, and market linkages, thereby removing the need for middlemen. Working on both the upstream (pre-harvest) and downstream (post-harvest) sides, we are attempting to achieve the threefold aims of increasing production, increasing access to services and solutions at doorsteps, and improving market connections for improved price realisation. The incorporation of AI and ML into our app enables us to scale our operations, expand our audience base, and encourage grassroots technological adoption.
By increasing the profitability of farmers' operations, one of NKosh's long-term goals is to have an effect on more than 5 million farmers by the year 2025. Given the zeal and conviction with which the company's founders approached their mission, this does not appear to be an impossible goal. We hope that the trip ahead is fruitful for Nkosh and the many others who are working hard to solve this problem for Bharat.
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