How BigHaat is Transforming Indian Agriculture—One Seed, One Farmer at a Time

By Champions of Bharat

In a country where over 140 million farmers form the backbone of the economy, agricultural innovation is not a luxury—it’s a necessity. Yet for decades, Indian farmers have battled information asymmetry, lack of quality inputs, and limited access to markets.

Enter BigHaat—an agri-tech platform co-founded by Sachin Nandwana, a man with deep roots in farming and a vision powered by technology. From walking the fields himself to building a full-stack, pan-India digital solution for Indian farmers, his journey is a masterclass in grassroots innovation and unwavering purpose.

From Soil to Silicon: Sachin’s Origin Story

Sachin comes from a farming family and has personally experienced the complete agricultural cycle—from sowing seeds to harvesting crops and storing fodder. After earning a degree in engineering, he worked with Honeywell, developed precision water systems, taught for a while, and observed a glaring truth:

“No one was really thinking about farmers. Everyone thought there was no money here.”

But Sachin saw something else—a moral responsibility. Alongside his co-founder Satish, he began digging into India’s biggest problems, and none felt more urgent than fixing agriculture using data, science, and technology.

2013–2015: The Eureka Years

Around 2013, as India began tiptoeing into its tech revolution, Sachin was already building early agri-tech prototypes. His team developed a precision water control system but quickly realized that India’s market wasn’t ready for such advanced tech yet. So they did what most don’t—they went back to the drawing board and really studied the problem.

They discovered a fundamental gap:

• Farmers didn’t know which input product to use

• There was no access to reliable information

• Supply chains were broken, and farmers were planting crops based on hearsay, not data

This realization led them to go “full-stack,” addressing everything from input supply to real-time advisory and output traceability.

Cracking the Supply Chain Code

Contrary to the common wisdom that middlemen were the enemy, Sachin identified the real issue as a supply chain imbalance.

“If farmers sow based on market rumors or neighbor’s decisions, it distorts supply and crashes prices.”

To solve this, they needed data—and lots of it. But rather than start big, they did the smartest thing possible: they narrowed the problem.

BigHaat began by focusing on seeds—the toughest agri input category to crack due to the complexity and data needs. For three years, they sold only seeds, particularly for horticultural crops, gathering real-time sowing pattern data to build smarter recommendations.

Was the Farmer Ready for Digital?

You might think farmers wouldn’t buy inputs online in 2015—but Sachin thought differently. His telecom background gave him a crucial insight:

“Smartphones weren’t widespread yet, but data adoption was inevitable.”

So BigHaat created an omnichannel model—phone calls, a responsive website, and offline support. Relatives in cities helped farmers place online orders. A simple missed call triggered a callback and advisory. The team even used Facebook and Google to reach rural households.

And the results? Today, over 2.5 crore (25 million) farmers have interacted with BigHaat in some way—whether to verify prices, seek advice, or buy inputs.

Revolutionizing Advisory with Crop Doctor

Traditional advisory in India relied on shopkeepers, often pushing high-margin products instead of actual solutions. So BigHaat built Crop Doctor—an AI-powered diagnostic platform.

A farmer simply takes a photo of a diseased leaf and uploads it. Within seconds:

• The system identifies the disease

• Provides audio-narrated symptoms

• Suggests curated treatment options (free of charge)

The system uses image data, geo-tagging, and field diagnostics to even provide area-level early warnings. Farmers have seen a 25–30% yield improvement by acting on these timely recommendations.

Building a Food-Safe, Export-Ready India

The team didn’t stop at inputs and advisory. Sachin’s long-term vision was to make Indian produce export-ready by building a food-safe supply chain.

Why? Because in export markets, organic is not enough. Buyers look for:

• IPM (Integrated Pest Management) compliance

• MRL (Maximum Residue Limit) standards

• Full traceability from soil test to harvest

So BigHaat created BigTrace—a tool that tracks everything from seed variety to pesticide usage, offering blockchain-style traceability for crops like chilli and spices.

“We give international buyers confidence. And we give Indian farmers better prices and reduced input costs.”

Farmers following IPM protocols and using green molecules (eco-friendly agrochemicals with low residue) saw not just yield improvement, but 5–6x income growth compared to traditional crops like wheat or rice.

The Rise of Kisan Vedika: A Farmer’s LinkedIn

To foster peer learning and community sharing, BigHaat launched Kisan Vedika, a rural community platform.

• Farmers ask questions

• Share photos and practices

• Influence and learn from one another

Social media, especially WhatsApp, Facebook, and Instagram, plays a key role in this ecosystem. Word of mouth remains king, but digital influence is rising, particularly among younger farmers and their urban-educated family members.

Solving the Talent Problem in AgriTech

One challenge rural startups face is talent. According to Sachin:

“Agriculture domain experts often don’t understand tech, and tech experts don’t understand rural problems.”

To bridge this, BigHaat created the Agri Digitization Program, where agricultural students:

• Get digital training

• Interact with farmers across India

• Solve real problems through research and field assignments

For rural youth, the company is also working on vocational upskilling, particularly around climate-resilient practicesand value-added agriculture.

The Future: India as a Global Agri-Tech Leader

When asked about the future, Sachin is clear-eyed and optimistic:

“We’re at the cusp of a transformation. Like UPI did for payments, agri-tech will do for farming.”

He believes India, along with the US and Israel, is poised to lead the global agri revolution—but with solutions tailored to small landholders. With 15 crore small and marginal farmers in India alone (out of 50 crore globally), the opportunity is massive.

And yes, India’s solutions will scale globally—built in Bharat, for the world.

Advice to Aspiring Rural Entrepreneurs

“Think big. Start small. Pick one crop, like garlic. Build the full value chain around it. Add value like a needle-maker does from iron ore. That’s where wealth is created.”

Sachin’s message is simple yet powerful: Don’t aim to sell commodities. Aim to build solutions.

Final Thoughts

BigHaat’s decade-long journey teaches us what happens when empathy meets execution. It’s a story of farmers, technology, resilience—and the audacity to believe that Indian agriculture can, and will, leap into the future.

If you're a farmer, a rural youth, or someone who dreams of building for Bharat—this is your invitation.