Success Story: Know how Dr. Pragnesh Rawal achieved great success from being an engineer to becoming an agricultural entrepreneur

Success Story: A 34-year-old visionary from the Gujarati hamlet of Bholad, Dr. Pragnesh Bharat Kumar Raval is revolutionizing contemporary agriculture by fusing sustainability, smart technology, and farmer-focused solutions. He started off as a computer engineer before making the daring move into farming four years ago. He now heads a vibrant federation that helps more than 10,000 farmers and, in only 1.5 years, makes between Rs 1 and Rs 1.5 crore a year from projects like organic horticulture, stevia production, and precision farming.

Dr. Raval was raised in the agricultural heartland of Dholka Taluka, where he was exposed to conventional farming practices. Even though he earned an honorary doctorate in e-Governance and Agriculture and a master’s degree in computer engineering, his real revolution started at the local level. Throughout rural Gujarat, he worked extensively on the last-mile delivery of social programs like Ayushman Bharat, Aadhaar inclusion, and PM-Kisan while serving as a governance consultant for more than 10 years.

Dr. Raval made a crucial observation during this phase: despite the fact that almost 90% of the recipients of these programs were farmers, they still faced systemic problems like limited access to high-quality inputs, weak market connections, a lack of funding, and a lack of knowledge about contemporary technologies. His dedication to empowering farmers via practical action as well as policy was spurred by these difficulties.

The First Steps: Thinking Big, Starting Small

Dr. Raval began by recognizing the problems faced by farmers and coming up with creative solutions. Instead of farming himself, he concentrated on using precision farming services to assist other farmers. These include weather forecasting, crop advice, irrigation guidance, soil testing, remote sensing, and warning of pests and diseases. Furthermore, his endeavors to establish robust market connections guarantee farmers’ access to equitable and lucrative marketplaces.

The Path to Agribusiness Leadership

He established the Indian Agriculture Union Federation (IAUF), a nationwide organization that supports farmers, in 2023. It unites more than 45 organizations, such as Self-Promoted Farmer Groups, Farmer Producer Companies (FPCs), and those covered by government CSS programs. More than 10,000 farmers are directly served by IAUF, which provides services including capacity development, market connections, financial access, and specialized agri-inputs.

In his role as IAUF Director, Dr. Raval has included cutting-edge technologies like precise soil health monitoring, satellite remote sensing, and tech-based recommendations for crop planning and harvest management. In order to lessen farmers’ reliance on intermediaries, he has assisted in the establishment of Minimum Support Price (MSP) procurement facilities at the cluster level. These include partnerships with progressive farmers serving as anchor entities, FPCs, and PACS.

Using Obstacles to Create Market Opportunities

Recognizing market patterns and taking early action is one of Dr. Raval’s strong points. He decided to grow stevia after seeing the growing demand for natural sweeteners and therapeutic herbs. He is also in favor of agricultural strategies based on water and carbon credits. By using green financing, it is assisting farmers in lessening their environmental impact.

As a pioneer in agribusiness, he advocates for climate solutions including water and carbon credits as well as specialized goods made for the advancement of sustainable agriculture. In Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi, and Haryana, his plans emphasize income diversification, sustainability, and skill development. He often leads training sessions on sustainable farming methods and carbon credit schemes.

Impactful Enterprise: Vital Statistics

Dr. Raval’s agribusiness has generated between Rs. 1 and Rs. 1.5 crore in revenue annually in only 1.5 years. This covers both his own endeavors and IAUF’s group projects. In addition to guaranteeing his own financial success, his business strategy provides thousands of small and marginal farmers with fair prices for their crops, market awareness, and technical assistance.

Awards and Recognition on a National Level

His efforts have received a great deal of praise:

• The Bombay Stock Exchange’s Best Startup Award 2024, presented by the BSE and Vyapar Jagat
• Gujarat Changemaker’s Award 2024, given by Shri Suresh Prabhu, a former Union Minister
• The Gujarat Legislative Assembly Speaker, Shri Shankarbhai Chaudhary, presented the Supporters Women Thinkers Federation Recognition 2025.
• His dedication to combining innovation, diversity, and sustainable development is shown by these honors.

Function in GFBN and Prospects

Dr. Raval is pleased to be a part of Krishi Jagran’s Global Farmer Business Network (GFBN), which aims to bring together and assist India’s most influential agribusiness owners.

In the future, he hopes to expand the federation to include more than 100 FPCs, market organic fruits that are ready for export, such as guava and custard apple, and set up decentralized processing centers for goods with added value. Additionally, he sees the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) for predictive analytics and real-time crop monitoring.

The tale of Dr. Pragnesh Bharat Kumar Raval is a powerful illustration of how one person can change a whole environment. As an award-winning agripreneur and tech-savvy consultant, his work fills gaps in rural areas with sustainable, scalable solutions. In addition to increasing revenues, his programs provide farmers the ability to take charge of their own destiny.

According to him, “Farming isn’t just about growing crops; it’s about growing communities, building ecosystems, and nurturing a sustainable tomorrow.”