Limited Scope of Mechanisation (Unmet Needs)

Problem Statement

Many crop and terrain-specific farming operations, particularly for niche or high-value crops (e.g., ginger, nutmeg, hillside farming), remain unmechanised due to the lack of cost-effective, user-friendly, and adaptable equipment tailored to local needs.

Innovation Opportunities

• Cost-Effective, User-Friendly Equipment Design (Localised R&D): Solutions to crowdsource or facilitate the design and small-scale manufacturing of simple, affordable tools for difficult operations (e.g., ginger harvesting, banana desuckering).
• Modular and Adaptable Mechanisation Systems: Development of core machinery chassis with easily interchangeable modules for various operations (tillage, seeding, spraying, inter-cultivation) suitable for small plots.

Use Case Example

A startup develops a low-power, lightweight inter-cultivator module that attaches to an existing tiller, specifically designed for weeding in closely spaced turmeric rows on a slightly sloped field.