Deshpande Foundation

Owned by Ashu Sikri (Unlicensed)
Jun 20, 2022
2 min read

  • Switched from a grant-making org to an implementing org 5 years ago.  They have a team of ~1000: ~900 in the field & ~100 engineers.  They're all mostly in the northern Karnataka region around Hubli but are also expanding

  • They're supporting FPOs but are finding that the super small ones don't have much collective power.  As a result, they've create an apex FPO structure on top of a bunch of other FPOs that is staffed by some of their staff today.

  • They're trying to use data to help the FPOs' operations: mainly to pull from existing govt data (soil card, water table) and remote sensing (soil moisture).  They then work with individual farmer members -- usually 4-5 at a time -- to set up "joint liability groups" under RBI (https://www.rbi.org.in/Scripts/NotificationUser.aspx?Id=9336&Mode=0 ).   The groups than apply for loans for farm pond construction from RBI and apparently now other priority lending bank windows.  They have focused primarily on individual farmer-level asset creation with farm ponds to avoid governance issues with shared assets. 

  • There's a combination of the farmer cost-share, bank loan, and Deshpande (+other CSR) grants that are given (with the majority being the loan).

  • Deshpande staff then train the farmers on the construction of the farm ponds, they've also set up entrepreneurs to dig the ponds with JCB equipment, etc.. 

  • They're close to the RBI governor so haven't had too many issues with the loans, but did say that they do get delayed and that they often ask for more/different information than was originally needed.

  • Deshpande staff have created a tech system to manage that documentation and automate how it is shared with RBI, etc.. 

  • Deshpande staff then provide training to the farmers and FPOs (not entirely clear what happens at that level since the funds, assets, etc all go direct to individual farmers) on using ponds, agroforestry, natural farming practices, drip irrigation, etc.. 

  • Deshpande's tech systems that try to estimate how much soil moisture changed as a result of the farm ponds which they've found as significant.  

From us, 

  • They're interested in leveraging the kind of partnerships that we have incl. with gov't and FPOs to expand their methodology

  • Utilizing new or existing videos that can walk farmers and the orgs that they're part of on the benefits & use of tools like farm ponds, drip irrigation, etc.

  • FarmStack as a way for farmers and the FPOs that they belong to to govern their own data

  • I mentioned the funding platform idea in general, which seemed to align, but mostly they see there being a bunch of funding already existing in India from groups like RBI, NABARD, etc. that they'd want to route for sustainable ag asset creation.

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