Mankind Pharma forays into agri-tech space, plans to invest Rs 200 crore

Mankind Pharma on Monday announced its foray into the agri-tech segment, with plans to invest up to Rs 200 crore in the first two to three years.

The company has set up a new arm Mankind Agritech Pvt Ltd, which will offer a variety of crop care solutions to Indian farmers, including weedicides, insecticides, fungicides, plant growth regulators and biologicals, Mankind Pharma said in a statement.

"We are happy to announce our launch in the agritech domain with long-term investment plans, with an initial (Rs) 150 to (Rs) 200 crore capex infusion in the first two to three years," Mankind Pharma Managing Director and Vice-Chairman Rajeev Juneja said.

Asserting that technology is playing a crucial role in ensuring the growth of the agriculture sector in India, he said, "Agritech has the potential to scale up the agricultural industry through technological intervention. If the farmers get the right products and tools they would be in a position to make an informed decision of using input and right technology".

The new vertical will be headed by Indian agrochemical industry veteran Partha Sengupta, who was the national marketing head and part of the senior leadership team at Dhanuka Agritech Ltd, overseeing marketing operations in India, Bangladesh and Nepal, the company said.

The decision behind foraying into this division is to assist Indian farmers by providing new-age technologies and helping farmers for the betterment of the rural sector, it added.