New Delhi, Aug 2, 2024: Agfintech startup Dvara E-Registry (DER) has won the prestigious Water and Energy for Food (WE4F) Grand Challenge South and Southeast Asia Regional Innovation Hub.
WE4F is a joint international initiative of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the European Union (EU), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of the Netherlands, the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), Sweden through the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), and the US Agency for International Development (USAID).
The award supports DER’s innovative project to implement Direct Seeded Rice (DSR) in Madhya Pradesh, aiming to cover 10,000 hectares by March 2025 in partnership with identified Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs). These farmers will be connected to the Carbon Credit program which will help farmers to get a secondary source of income through adopting sustainable practices.
Rice crops contribute 10% of global methane gas release as traditional rice cultivation requires standing water, using 15 million litres per hectare, creating anaerobic conditions that release methane gas. DER is working closely with FPOs in Madhya Pradesh, India, and onboarding farmers to educate them on climate-smart practices like DSR in Paddy in addition to providing market and financial linkages.
DER will provide financing to small and marginal farmers to help them adopt climate-resilient practices. Financial support is considered the major challenge in promoting climate-smart practices. Additionally, DER will promote its digital platform, Doordristhi, within partner FPOs to offer agri-inputs, customised farm advisories, and market connect services. The platform facilitates the digitisation of farm data and strengthens market and financial linkages, ensuring that farmers have access to the latest agricultural techniques and resources.
DER's approach includes promoting the DSR method, which significantly reduces water usage compared to traditional rice cultivation methods. Specifically, DSR can save approximately 4.5 million litres of water per hectare, a substantial conservation given that Madhya Pradesh has 3 million hectares under rice cultivation.
Tarun Katoch, Co-Founder of Dvara E-Registry, stated, "We are honoured to receive this recognition from the Water and Energy for Food Grand Challenge. Our goal is to reform rice cultivation in Madhya Pradesh by promoting the DSR method, which significantly reduces water usage and enhances sustainability. This project will not only save billions of litres of water but also empower farmers with the knowledge and tools needed for climate-smart agriculture."
Radtasiri (Bes) Wachirapunyanont, Regional Innovation Hub Manager at WE4F, added, "We are thrilled to support Dvara E-Registry in their innovative approach to water and energy conservation. Their work in promoting Direct Seeded Rice not only addresses critical environmental issues but also empowers smallholder farmers by improving their livelihoods and resilience to climate change."
DER's project also incorporates energy-saving measures by promoting zero and minimum tillage practices, which help reduce energy consumption and enhance soil moisture retention. In addition to these practices, DER is promoting seed multiplication programmes within FPOs to adopt climate-resilient seed varieties that require less irrigation. This effort has already seen success in five FPOs in Maharashtra, six in Madhya Pradesh and one in Odisha.
DER’s comprehensive support for smallholder farmers includes farmer financing, affordable technology access, quality inputs, tailored education, extension services, and custom hiring centres. So far, DER has covered 600 hectares, saving 2.7 billion litres of water. With the support of this award, DER aims to expand its reach, targeting to save 45 billion litres of water by March 2025.
DER’s innovative approach not only promotes sustainable agricultural practices but also empowers farmers to become active participants in climate resilience and environmental conservation.
