This Young Entrepreneur Is All Set To Change The Face Of Agricultural Sector In India

From a small village in Rajasthan, Anu Meena has come a long way into becoming the founder of a tech company that's planning to bring new innovations in the agro sector.

the team of agrowave

Every day we hear about new inventions, new ideas and new ventures popping up to make our lives better. Over the years, India has also seen a great revolution in the field of agriculture which has mostly focussed on improving the produce and sustainable farming practices. Yet every year, a lot of people die due to hunger even as our farmers do not get paid properly for making their farmed produce reach the right people. As a result, a lot of food stock goes to waste leaving the common people high and dry while the pressure of expenses drives farmers to commit suicide.

An Attempt To Revolutionise The Agricultural Sector

anu meena receiving award

Enter Anu Meena, a girl from a small village named Manoli in Rajasthan, who decided to turn this situation around. After graduating from IIT Delhi in 2016, she worked in an American start-up for a small time. The next year, she started a company called AgroWave to solve the issues faced by her grandfather who is a farmer and others like him. For her efforts, she has been named in the Forbes 30 under 30 Asia list, named among the Top 10 innovators of India by India Today Magazine and has been awarded by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment as well. A TEDx speaker too, she has appeared as a speaker at Wired Next Generation Japan and many other events where she inspires young entrepreneurs through her journey. Her Zindagi talked to Anu Meena about her journey and her work which is touching many lives, and it’s just the beginning.

What’s Your Business Model Like? How Is It Better Than The Current System?

anu meena with farmer

Farmers don't get good returns on their produce due to lack of processes and technology into the supply chain. We are providing better returns to the farmers by connecting them to businesses using technology. Also, we are mapping supply and demand to reduce wastage.

We are focusing on small farmers where they can form a group of 20-25 and sell their produce together at better rates. Also, we don't own any warehouse; we bring farmers, traders and businesses on an online platform and optimise overall operations. We provide data-driven insights to farmers, traders and businesses which help them to function. We help to reduce the wastage of the traders by giving them organised pre-booked demand. We help farmers in decision making for crops.

Are There Any Challenges That You Have Faced As A Woman/Woman Entrepreneur?

I don't consider myself a woman entrepreneur. I am only an entrepreneur regardless of my gender. Being an entrepreneur itself is very challenging as there are tons of ups and downs which make me a strong, mature and a better person day by day. My work requires me to travel a lot since we need to interact with farmers, which can be challenging. As I am not much experienced and very young in the industry so it's plus and minus both depending on the situation.

Your Word Of Advice For People Who Want To Launch A Start-up?

Please do extensive market research about the market, competition, policies, technology & sustainability. Start with small vicinity and never ever start something if you think you might lose interest in a few years as passion is a very important key for success. It is also important to take the fund-raise dilution seriously and to take guidance and mentorship from people in the industry.

What Sort Of Support Have You Received From The Men And Women In Your Life?

Life has been like a roller coaster. I have met people who don't know me at all but have supported me and that made me believe that if you do something good, people will try to make it happen by contributing their bit. My family, friends, mentors have really been supportive during difficult times. Mr. Kadiyaan, an officer in Haryana Govt found us on Google and approached us to help in his capacity. Mr Yogesh Agrawal, MD of Daffodil Software Pvt. Ltd., was helpful in many ways from the creation of the business model to motivation. Hemerndra Mathur, one of my mentors and advisors, has been helpful in decision making for investments. My father has shown confidence in me by not asking a single question about my start-up. One of my seniors Vanya Bisht from IIT Delhi has always helped me improve as a person. Mr B.L. Meena, Joint Secretary of Social Justice and Empowerment has motivated me in many ways and has helped me in aligning govt policies for entrepreneurs.

You Have Also Struggled With Depression. Can You Tell Us How You Came Out Of It?

Yes, I was in depression for a year during 11th standard when I shifted to a town from my village. The other students were from good schools, had scored very well in 10th standard and had faster problem-solving skills while I had studied in a government school in my village so it was very hard for me to cope with the environment and the culture. This led me to depression.

During that time, I used to study for more than 18 hours. I used to think how people are happy, how they are driving, how they are talking, how they are reading newspapers etc. Depression is a process of endless thoughts. But the study which I did make my performance strong and I topped the 11th class. I took a break to visit home during the summer holidays where I recovered from the depression.

My advice to people who might be going through depression is: Don't talk much about it with everyone. Instead, involve yourself in multiple activities where you can divert your attention.

Payal Jawalkar: Another Trailblazer In The Making

Payal Jawalkar at village

Behind the venture of AgroWaveis Anu Meena’s IIT Delhi batch mate Payal Jawalkar. She has known Anu from the last 8 years and together with her experience in technology, analytics and management, she collaborated to incorporate tech in the highly unorganised agriculture sector. Here’s what she had to say:

Currently, the supply chain is unstructured and translucent. We aim to create such disruption in the industry through which we can map production & demand on a real-time basis. The game-changer is that we will be using the cutting edge technology to benefit farmers. Technology at the ground level helps us scale exponentially. Eventually, farmers should get impacted & improve their earnings.

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Her Zindagi wishes Anu Meena all the best in her endeavours and hopes that we can have more women entrepreneurs like her who bring about substantial changes to develop the country.

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Want to know about more inspirational women like her? The keep reading Her Zindagi.

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