How Farmguide Is Managing The Largest E-Governance System
There has been a dramatic shift from customers in the last two decades
from the public sector banks to the private banks, the primary reason being ‘ease of doing business’. Even though the government is the largest player in most sectors why is there always a distinct reservation that we as individuals and companies experience in any collaborative mission? And what is the secret formula of Farmguide’s success with them?
Bureaucracy and red-tapism have shrouded the entire government machinery for an eternity now. Navigating through the zones and departments of relevance in a country with size and dynamics of India has always been a challenge and this is where a startup can help, this is where startups can make a difference for any layman and especially a farmer who has not had the privilege of schooling and preliminary guidance.
Everyone knows about problems, give me a solution
Technology is not advanced if it’s not convenient
So when Nikhil Toshniwal, founder of Farmguide, launched in 2016, sought the government bodies out it could not have been a cakewalk?
‘We have covered a remarkable journey with the GOI and it has been exciting like a hurdle race, each milestone was a learning process but we gained ground slowly and steadily. There are certain myths and hard facts attached to government functioning but that, exactly, is the avenue of opportunity for startups.
Most government officials are not tech savvy but they don’t suffer from technical dyslexia, they need to be introduced to the cutting edge technology which does not dissuade with a suave interface but familiarizes with an uncomplicated user-friendly interactive system. Technology can be rather overwhelming and we wanted to make this a painless, agreeable experience for them. Our operating systems can be used even by a novice.’
Language is Only One Mode of Communication
‘Communication with the government officials was not easy but if we could speak to the last farmer in the remotest of villages, we could most definitely speak to their government representatives’ says Nikhil.
Again, Farmguide’s strategy was not to intimidate them with the use of jargon but drew them with the wealth of knowledge his team had gained with the time spent on the ground, amidst the farmers. Their convened know-how and designed products to better the lives of farmers with the farmer at heart. “We didn’t approach them with a report card of flaws, we didn’t just flag issues, we offered solutions.’
‘Generation Gap Maybe, it’s Not a Canyon’
Farmguide has a workforce that is largely in their 20s and the government
officials are veterans and are enslaved by routine, uncertainty and chained by
bureaucracy too. Communication is difficult as you are the outsider and they face a reluctant orientation to a new concept.
Another challenge is the voluminous paperwork that even beats the colonial practice. FarmGuide digitized it for them; To bring transparency, accountability and efficiency in the process, FarmGuide began with end-to-end digitization of Girdawari (A Mughal- initiated land revenue collection process), the success of which got them a foothold with the GOI.
Personal Branding Translates to Company Branding
‘To begin with, I used to find myself sandwiched between the demanding
government body officials and grievances of my own team members but those
were teething issues as we progressed from one milestone to another’ recalls
Nikhil.
I myself trained my team and all officials and that is my competitive
advantage and till date, I have trained all my stakeholders-employees and
customers. I train to effectively create more trainers.
Gradually we built inroads in this framework and won them over with our perseverance and detailed ideation that they could not find flaws with. It made our team more strong, more responsible, more resilient.’
Today we have a seat at the table, not just as service delivery partners but also as consultancy and well, literally too. Not only did the Central Government of India sign an agreement with FarmGuide, but also provided FarmGuide with an office to set up the server, develop the All India Crop Insurance portal and operate from the Krishi Bhawan Office. FarmGuide now accounts for two offices of its own in Gurgaon and in Krishi Bhawan.
This has been a three-way beneficial relationship as both FarmGuide and GOI had a common goal — to benefit farmers. Our initiatives like harvest inspection, DBT, CCE, and Crop Insurance worked for the farmers and made it easier for the government to reach out to them with relative ease.
Our crop insurance software solution is a dynamic platform which digitises the data to ensures the flow of information between banks, insurance companies and other stakeholders on a real-time basis, facilitating speedy delivery of insurance claims and reduction in scope of human error in the process.
No Pain — No Gain
‘Working with the GOI has given us the credibility we were looking to create.
While every positive outcome got us a pat on the back, every error got
exponentially exposed and that keeps us on our toes,’ Adds Nikhil. There is also continuous strife to excel and to outdo ourselves and continuously enhance our products.
Farmguide’s collaboration with the government gives them access to
the larger database, larger landscape with unique dynamics of each geography, diverse set of quandaries and incommensurable solutions that they customize all over the country.
“Our crop insurance software solution is a dynamic platform which digitises the data to ensures flow of information between banks, insurance companies and other stakeholders on real-time basis, facilitating speedy delivery of insurance claims and reduction in scope
of human error in the process.”
