It all started during the 3rd year of my Computer Engineering at COEP Pune. I came across a Farm Robot (FarmBot) which was being developed by some college students in the US. It was and still is a fully open source model! I was amazed to see the robot plant seeds, spray water and pesticides, remove weeds and all this could be controlled by a mobile app. So that's when I started digging any information about such AgriTech Startups in India. The year was 2015. It was still rare. But today, there are numerous such startups cropping up in India as well.
At that point in time, I didn't realize if I could just switch over from my Computers to Agriculture. So I took the placements offered at our college and got a job at Barclays Pune as a software developer. Simultaneously, my search for a means to switch over to the Farm Side was still on. And then, I came across the Food and Agribusiness Management course at IIM-A. I googled a little and guess what! There were a few other similar courses as well at reputed institutes. So I shortlisted a few. IIM-A, L offers ABM but A is more agri-focussed. IRMA offers Rural Management. MANAGE Hyderabad, SIIB Pune. I gave CAT 2018. Got a decent 94%ile which was good enough to get calls from these schools - or so I thought!
But I did not receive calls from A or L probably because of my Computers background and not-so-amazing percentile.
But I got calls from all the other 3 institutes! So I decided to make the most of this opportunity. I kept myself updated with the Agricultural Scenario in our country and totally enjoyed myself learning and reading more about it. In all of my interviews, I was asked this question that
"Why this shift from IT to Agriculture?". This question was a more evolved version of the
"Tu kheti karegi?", which I had answered multiple times. So I was able to answer it honestly and spontaneously. And I got acceptances from all 3 of them.
I have chosen IRMA as my B-School because I feel this place will help me achieve my goal and that too in a way which will benefit society. IRMA has a very different take on management and I can't wait to get started on this incredible journey which I believe will take me closer to my goal of having a socially aware AgriTech Venture of my own!
Let's connect if you have a similar idea!