Mahindra & Mahindra says its farm equipment division head Rajesh Jejurikar is on a mission. And the mission resonates with that of the government.
“We will look at doubling the income of farmers,” says the 52-year old. The nation’s largest SUV and tractor maker wants to bring the latest farming technologies to India, and see how to customise those for the benefit of the Indian farmer, including the one whose landholding is marginal.
While the company is bullish on India, for growth, it is looking global, where the market for tractors and other farm equipment is worth more than $150 billion a year. At home, the tractor market is just $6 billion, while that for other agriculture equipment is even smaller.
Mahindra was already the global No. 1 in terms of tractor sales, yet the company was addressing just the home and a few overseas markets. As much as 95% of the division’s revenue came from tractor sales in India. That was a risk.
India is too dependent on monsoon rains with about two-thirds of its farmland having no irrigation facilities. Farming, and so sales of farm equipment, takes a hit when not enough rains fall. Droughts have become more frequent in recent years than in the past.
Credit: The Economic Times