It is a widely acknowledged fact that the agriculture sector continues to play a vital role in India’s socio-economic development and progress. Despite the non-agriculture sector gaining enormous momentum in recent years, the agricultural sector remains one of the principal sources of employment, with 45 percent of the workforce engaged in agricultural and allied activities in the

country. According to NITI Aayog, during 2021- 2022, the sector contributed 18.6 percent of the national income at current prices during 2021-22.

Even though there is a technological push happening in the agriculture sector, India's agricultural R&D is lagging behind that of other major agricultural countries. This can be seen from the increasing gap between potential and actual yield, low adoption of smart and precision farming methods, and less use of advanced sciences in agriculture. The country is only able to match the world yield in rice and wheat, while other major crops like cotton, soybean, groundnut, and rapeseed mustard need significant improvements in yield that have been achieved in many countries.

According to a CII-McKinsey report, the consumption demand is increasing in India, with per capita GDP expected to increase by a whopping 320 percent in the next 20 years. India's agritech sector opportunity is valued at $ 24 billion, with a market penetration of less than 1 percent. While this itself presents a humongous opportunity, the Indian agriculture market is predicted to increase to $580.82 billion by 2028. In 2022,India had approximately 450 agritech startups, with the number increasing by 25 percent year on year. It’s an ideal time to be in the Agritech industry.