Agrithink: How this startup from Assam is poised for a place among the most impactful agritech startups in India

25JunJune 25, 2021 By startupassam

In a country where agriculture forms the backbone of its economy, contributions being made to hold it upright are surprisingly scarce still. The problem lies not in the lack of capable minds, but in the hesitant attitude towards adopting more advanced methods combined with the lack of motivation to change that. There is always light at the end of a tunnel, and the time to bask in that light has arrived for our farmers. Agritech startups in India are working day in and day out to hold the backbone of our economy upright by integrating technology into the agricultural sector. Agrithink Services is one of Northeast India’s rising agritech startups that is working towards this integration and also helping farmers adapt to this revolution.

Agrithink’s main product/service is a sensor and app-based climate monitoring system called the Smart Micro-Climate Monitoring and Control System (SMMCS). One of the main challenges faced in the agricultural sector is the lack of data, which has time and again proven to be a big obstacle when it comes to providing optimal climate conditions to crops. This is one of the major reasons behind the failure of crops. With an IoT-powered system that can monitor and store data regarding parameters like temperature, moisture, and soil pH, the SMMCS is capable of monitoring any protected agricultural settings like greenhouses or mushroom cultivations. All that one needs to do is log into the app using a login ID and the ability to monitor the plantation’s micro-climate will be in their hands along with the ability to irrigate their crops when need be.

This patented revolutionary system has won Agrithink Services the attention of numerous businesses as well as individual consumers. The Sikkim Government has shown immense interest in the SMMCS along with the desire to adopt this technology for all the agricultural beneficiaries in their state once the pandemic curbs are lifted. Apart from the SMMCs, Agrithink Services is also working on a soil health management service. Dr. Bijaylakshmi Goswami, a co-founder of Agrithink Services, emphasizes the importance of soil and expresses how the lack of data regarding the various parameters of soil is a matter of concern that needs to be looked into.

Dr. Bijalakshmi Goswami (left) in the field with Taufik Ahmed (right)

In a world like the one we live in, technology has become an inseparable part of nearly every sector. There is a need for pioneers from different fields to make this revolution happen to unleash every sector’s optimum potential. Agritech startups in India, like Agrithink Services, are doing exactly that – bringing out the true potential in agriculture by steadfastly battling the challenge of getting the farmers on board to put this revolutionary integration into motion headfirst.

“We can’t sit back thinking that the farmers will not be open to these changes. How will they if we simply just feed them words and hesitate to get into the field ourselves? We need to show them how it works and that it actually works and not just push them to the point of getting overwhelmed and ultimately refusing to adopt these new changes,” Dr. Bijaylakshmi rightfully says.

The desire to be a part of this revolution was born in Dr. Bijaylakshmi, a Doctorate in Biotechnology when she became a part of a wide range of projects for SmartFusionware which exposed her to the true potential of IoT and ICT. She met like-minded people while at work, like co-founder Taufik Ahmed, and decided to jump on board to bring about tech integration into agriculture. Thus, were sown the seeds of Agrithink Services leading to its launch in the year 2019.

2020 proved to one of the hardest ever mountains to climb for people all around the world. However, for determined individuals like Dr. Bijaylakshmi and Taufik Ahmed, a challenge is by no means a reason to halt in their journey to the peak. Thanks to the founders’ hard work, Agrithink Services received the MASI grant amidst the pandemic, etching their name permanently in the book of successful agritech startups in India. Dr. Bijaylakshmi says, “When you receive recognitions as big as the MASI grant, it’s a push in the right direction. You realize that you’re on the right path and have every right to believe in yourself.” She admits to the grant truly helping them put their plans for Agrithink into motion.

In a fast-paced world with innovative minds coming up with one thing or the other at every corner, the courage to come up with something new ourselves is a big challenge. One needs to have faith in themselves to taste the air of success. On being asked if she ever faced any problems in the entrepreneurial world because of her gender, Dr. Bijaylakshmi brings to notice a very important lesson that every individual, regardless of their gender, needs to remember.

“Problems exist in every field, regardless of one’s gender. The right way to go about dealing with them is by not making them the focal point of our journey.”

Dr. Bijaylakshmi believes that even though being a woman comes with its own set of challenges, there exist some big perks too. She mentions how being a woman has helped her make a stronger impact by being one of the women pioneers in the tech world. This is exactly the kind of motivation we need to keep working towards our goals.

The pandemic might be here to stay for an indefinite amount of time, but that surely doesn’t mean we be rendered powerless to go about working towards our goals. Although it did pose some problems in the initial days of their launch concerning gaining validation from the farmers and other clients regarding their products/services, Agrithink Services is currently fully focused on putting their next service into motion and is meticulously working on it while at home. They have full faith that the startup will reach its target revenue by the end of the current year regardless of the pandemic.

Agritech startups in India are doing a wonderful job at bringing about the necessary changes to take agriculture to new heights. What comes first is putting in the best possible efforts and recognition as well as success shall follow. The co-founders fully believe that Agrithink Services is set to achieve big milestones in the coming years and become one of the most well-known agritech startups in India owing to the revolutionary services provided by them. They also believe in their startup’s potential at creating new employment opportunities. This especially aligns perfectly with Dr. Bijaylakshmi’s previous endeavors of helping women from marginalized communities find opportunities to sustain their living.

To bring a plan to fruition, no matter how well orchestrated it might be, is no child’s play. There come into play numerous factors that need pillars for support. Agrithink Services and its success so far is no different. During the initial months of its development, Assam Startup and IIM Calcutta Innovation Park proved to be the pillars for Agrithink Services. Both Taufik and Dr. Bijaylakshmi express their immense gratitude towards these organizations while admitting that all that they needed to put the plans into motion, they learned from these very organizations. They also mention the value that these names add to the startup and express their pleasure to have earned the right to be associated with these two organizations.

North East Farm Sales Promotion betters livelihood of 1000+ farmers in North East India

30JulJuly 31, 2020 By startupassam

Bhanu Pratap Singh was working in the development sector while DS Poonia was an IAS officer, holding several coveted posts during his three decades of service. Well-versed with the agricultural dependency of the North-Eastern states, they spotted a visible slack in product packaging, processing, branding, and marketing of the agricultural output among the farmers, which, in turn, constricts adequate returns. The region produces a handsome quantity of fruits, spices, and cashew, etc. But, it could not fetch a market price for the farmers at par with the markets in the other states. Marketing approaches and processing facilities, procurement practices, infrastructure, etc. act as major constraints in rural marketing in North East India. That’s when the duo decided to launch North East Farm Sales Promotion (NEFSP) in January 2019 with the objective to promote and create a market for the natural products from North East India.

North East Farm Sales Promotion offers on-demand processing and packaging services, addresses the common branding needs of farmers, and extends support in retailing, exports, and institutional sales. Realizing that the farmers are often forced by the middlemen to sell the perishable items at a much lower price due to the unavailability of cold storage facilities, NEFSP has also started offering sorting, grading, pouching, and vacuuming services to the farmers. For instance, ginger is ground into a pouched ginger paste, pineapple pieces are freshly tinned, while oranges are bottled up into squash. The startup procures the agricultural produce/products from the farmers for a price 1.2 times more than the market and sells those across the country. In the process, NEFSP is enlivening livelihoods for its 1000+ partner small farmers across North East India.

The startup is also churning out innovative value-added products like Naga Chilli Safety Spray, varieties of natural Room Fresheners, etc. It has set up warehouses at Guwahati and NCR and has market tie-ups with 26 stores across the country to sell the products. Besides, the startup curates gift hampers for government and corporate.

NEFSP’s commitment to give the farmers their due under any circumstances has especially stood out during the pandemic. While farmers in several parts of the country have received a major blow due to the lockdown, North East Farm Sales Promotion has continued to procure products like black rice, king chilli, beans, turmeric, black pepper, handmade soaps, etc. from its partner small farmers at premium prices and have been marketing the finished units across India. In the month of June alone, NEFSP did a business of close to Rs. 10 Lakhs and is, currently, working on completing orders worth Rs. 33 Lakhs received from various retailers across India. Founder Bhanu Pratap further informs about the bright possibilities of securing another order of Rs. 35 Lakhs in August.

And while many of us cribbed and cried over the business losses due to the pandemic, North East Farm Sales Promotion has utilised the time to revamp its product line and is gearing up to launch a number of new products, like cinnamon and bay leaf powder, Tripura cashew nuts, and Cinnamon and Bamboo Room Fresheners.

Indeed, entrepreneurship does not demand readymade roads. Real entrepreneurs thrive on carving out roads through the impasse.

Carving one’s own way comes with a number of life lessons. World’s youngest Seven Summiteer, Satyarup Siddhanta has seven life lessons that every entrepreneur would identify with. Read it here.

By: Satarupa Mishra

Covid-19, Force Majeure and Impact on Commercial Contracts

11May By startupassam

The Covid-19 outbreak hasn’t only wreaked havoc on people’s health, but has also muffled businesses and negatively impacted the economy. In India, as much as around the world, the protracting days of lockdown are bringing about major revenue losses and severe disruptions for the economy.

While businesses across sectors are mired from carrying out their performance obligations, companies are trying to find answers to the critical aspects associated with the inability to meet the obligations of a legally commercial contract in the current scenario. Questions on lease agreements and rental renegotiation being on top of the chart.

One way to protect a business against the obligations of a commercial contract is to invoke the Force Majeure clause in the contract.

Force Majeure is a French word meaning ‘Superior Force’. It absolves parties from the obligations of a contract in wake of a natural calamity or disaster, war, civil strike, etc. The intention of a Force Majeure clause is to protect a party from being punished for something that was not under their control.

Under the Indian Law, Force Majeure isn’t an implied concept. It is applicable only in contracts that expressly mention about it. If a contract does not have a Force Majeure clause, it won’t be applicable in that contract. Hence, it’s important to analyse the contract at the outset and see whether it has a Force Majeure clause.

In case of the presence of a Force Majeure clause, one needs to analyse whether the Covid-19 situation can be covered under the Force Majeure definition in the contract.

Some contracts use generic language to define a Force Majeure clause, stating to release a party from the obligations under a situation that is outside the party’s control. Under the given definition, Covid-19 is likely to stand as a reason or situation that is beyond the party’s control. Factors like supply chain disruption, labour shortage, etc. owing to the lockdown may be considered as something outside the party’s control and qualify as Force Majeure.

In some contracts, the Force Majeure events are specifically mentioned, in which case, it may not be possible to incorporate Covid-19 in the Force Majeure definition. Scan the contract and confirm whether it mentions natural disaster, epidemic, or pandemic as Force Majeure events. While WHO has declared Covid-19 as a pandemic, Ministry of Home Affairs has notified it to be a disaster under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 and Ministry of Finance has issued Office Memorandum stating Covid-19 to be a natural calamity.

However, there’s every possibility that a commercial contract may not include a Force Majeure clause. In that case, one has to find remedy in the Indian Contract Act, 1872 and interpret whether the current scenario qualifies under the ingredients provided therein.

Section 32 and Section 56 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872 talks about various scenarios when a contract is void or the performance of the contract is waived off or discharged.

Section 56 of the Act lays down the Doctrine of Frustration, which states that in case of a change in situation after entering the contract that makes it impossible for the party to perform the obligations under the contract, the contract becomes void or frustrated. However, the application of the Doctrine of Frustration in a given situation would vary case to case. Mere incidences of delay, expense, or onerousness aren’t sufficient for a party to claim protection under this provision. The party must prove that the performance of obligations became completely impossible because of the changed situation.

Supreme Court’s decision in 1954 on the Satyabrata Ghose v. Mugneeram Bangur & Co. case is an apt illustration on the Doctrine of Frustration. A builder had started a township and invited offers from the buyers. One of the buyers executed the builder-buyer agreement. Subsequently, because of some government acquisition, a large portion of the land for township was acquired and the builder was unable to complete the township as committed in the contract. The Court held that it was impossible to fulfill the commitment made at the time of entering the contract however since the time is not of essence, it would not be considered as a frustrated contract.

Applying the same principle, if it’s shown that the performance under the contract was possible even during the Covid-19 crisis, it will not be possible to take recourse to the Doctrine of Frustration. The defaulting party may be held liable for breach of contract, notwithstanding that the lockdown is going on or that there are severe financial consequences or losses borne by the party.

In any case, it’s important to send a notice to the other party at the earliest, communicating in clear writing about how performing the obligation has become impossible because of the current situation, requesting them to discharge the obligations or grant time extension to a period after the lockdown or mutually decide to terminate the contract. In case a contract provides for liquidated damage, send a notice to the party immediately so that the defaulting party may have a bona fide stand for duly informing them on time and that the latter was restricted due to the situation which had made the contract infructuous.

By: Rohit Jain

About the Author

Rohit Jain is a Senior Associate at Singhania & Partners LLP, New Delhi