STPI and MeitY Award ₹20 Lakh Grants to Four Startups for Sugarcane Harvest Innovation

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Posted by pallavi on 2024-08-09 07:55:17 |

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Four Startups Receive Grants for Advancing Sugarcane Harvesting Technology

The Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) have awarded ₹20 lakh grants each to four startups as part of the Smart Farm Grant Challenge (SFGC) Program. This initiative aims to revolutionize sugarcane harvesting through innovative technological solutions.

The awards were presented at a ceremony held at Electronics Niketan, New Delhi. Key figures in attendance included Sh. Alkesh Kumar Sharma, Secretary of MeitY, Sh. Bhuvnesh Kumar, Additional Secretary, and Sh. Arvind Kumar, Director General of STPI.

The SFGC program, launched in May 2022, sought solutions to optimize sugarcane harvesting by predicting harvest timings, estimating sugar content, and identifying mature plots. It received 474 submissions, with 108 applications shortlisted for further review. Ten startups were initially awarded ₹5 lakh each for prototype development, leading to the selection of four winners for the final product development grants.

The winning startups—AGAutomate Private Limited, GB Pant University of Agriculture, AGMitra Technologies Private Limited, and Satyukt Analytics Private Limited—will develop their solutions over the next six months. One of these will be chosen for a final prize of ₹50 lakh in the first year, with additional funding for maintenance in subsequent years.

The SFGC program reflects a broader push towards integrating advanced technologies in agriculture, aiming to boost productivity and efficiency in sugarcane farming while supporting innovation across diverse regions of India.

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