A private initiative has been taken by ITC Ltd in the state of Madhya Pradesh. It has helped the farmers in many ways, such as developing of local leadership, shared ownership of the assets created in this initiative, access to the latest knowledge for the agro-sector, sustainable income levels and skill development for productivity improvement.

This initiative from ITC has become a benchmark today in the ICT initiatives in agrosector. Several best practices can be learned from this initiative, namely −

●      ease of replicability and scalability

●      customization to meet the specific local needs and

●      organizational commitment

The success of e-chaupal has heralded a new era in the Indian agro-sector. The work needs to be carried forward and replicated in the other untapped areas. Creating business channels that can create a win-win situation both business and farming community has enormous economies of scope.