HYDERABAD, MARCH 13, 2025: The National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management (MANAGE), in collaboration with Michigan State University (MSU), is organizing the MANAGE-MSU Summit on “Revolutionizing Agriculture through Digital Innovations and Agri-Tech Startups” from March 12 to 14, 2025. The summit aims to foster collaboration between the two institutions, facilitating knowledge exchange, case studies, and brainstorming sessions to explore cutting-edge innovations shaping the future of agriculture.
Experts from Michigan State University (MSU), including Dr. Karim Maredia, Director, CANR International Programs; Mr. Michael Reinke, Viticulture Specialist, MSU; Ms. Rebecca Henne, State SNAP-Ed Coordinator, MSU; Dr. David Ivan, Director, Community, Food & Environment Institute, MSU; Mr. Eric Anderson, Soybean Educator; Ms. Paola Bacigalupo Sanguesa, Dairy Extension Educator; Dr. Nandkumar; along with Dr. Chandra Sekhar Gupta, Scientific Officer, PRA, Plant Biosecurity Division, NIPHM; Dr. Vidhu Kampurath P, Joint Director, Plant Health Engineering Division, NIPHM; Dr. Sagar Hanuman Singh, IPoS, Director General, MANAGE; Dr. Saravanan Raj, Director (Agricultural Extension), MANAGE; and faculty members, academic associates from MANAGE participating in the summit.
On the second day of the Summit, a discussion was held on Agri-Tech Startup Ecosystem in India, supporting new farmers and Food Entrepreneurs; Digital Innovations in agriculture. In his keynote address, Dr. Sagar Hanuman Singh, IPoS, Director General, MANAGE, welcomed all the delegates from MSU, provided an overview of the Indian agricultural sector and emphasized the growing adoption of digital tools and innovations by farmers. He highlighted that India’s agriculture is dominated by small and marginal farmers, who are increasingly leveraging farmer-producer organizations (FPOs) and Self-Help Groups (SHGs) to collectively afford and adopt modern technologies. He expressed his anticipation that the collaboration between MSU and MANAGE would drive meaningful advancements in agriculture and improve farmers’ livelihoods. He also extended his best wishes for future collaborations. Dr. Karim Maredia, Director, CANR International Programs, MSU, Highlighted that MSU has the Knowledge sharing collaboration with MANAGE. Furthe,r he underscored MSU’s ongoing collaborations with Indian institutions and expressed conviction that the partnership with MANAGE would contribute meaningfully to India’s Vision@2047. He further emphasized the need for expanded collaboration between MSU, MANAGE, and the National Institute of Plant health Management (NIPHM), aiming to drive impactful advancements in agricultural research, innovation, and capacity building.
In his opening remarks, Dr. Saravanan Raj, Director (Agricultural Extension), MANAGE, and CEO, MANAGE-CIA, provided an overview of India’s Startup ecosystem. He expressed optimism about future collaborations with MSU to further strengthen the innovation landscape in agriculture.
The Summit focuses on Digital Agriculture and Agri-Tech Startups. As part of the summit, the MSU team visited UrbanKisaan, Kompally, and T-Hub, Hyderabad, to explore successful Agri-Startups. Further visits include NIPHM, ni-msme, and interactions with faculty from these institutes. On the third day, the delegation will visit LR Natural Products (Honey Startup) and Digital Green Initiative, culminating in an open discussion on the potential future avenues of MANAGE-MSU collaboration in agricultural extension. The collaboration between MANAGE and Michigan State University (MSU) began in 2017 and has facilitated several annual visits by the MSU team to MANAGE and vice-versa. Through faculty-to-faculty interactions and brainstorming sessions, both institutions continuously exchanging innovations and insights, fostering a strong global networking platform. Dr. A. Srinivasacharyulu DD (KM), MANAGE and Dr. Karim Maredia, Director, CANR International Programs, MSU co-ordinating the summit.
