In an agrarian economy like India, investing in agriculture has long been considered a lucrative strategy. In fact, multiple reports estimate that the prominence of investments in agriculture will further be driven by distinctive factors, especially the exponential increase in the demand for nutritious food, other agricultural commodities, and technology. However, ploughing money into the integral elements of agriculture like farming can be tricky, considering the risks, including macroeconomic factors or nonguaranteed returns. Instrumental in alleviating such challenges and easing the investment processes while leveraging a tax-free ROI, Growpital, a Gurgaon-based agri-investment venture, stands out as a prominent alternative investment platform in India. “Everyone envisions a retirement plan where they own a villa and a farm. But with Growpital, they don’t have to wait until retirement. Anyone, as long as they’re an Indian citizen or NRI, can become a passive farmer”, explains Rituraj Sharma, Founder, Growpital.

Run with the objective of helping investors achieve safe agri-investments, Growpital serves as a funding arm of Zetta Farms, an award-winning agrotech company that has strengthened Indian agriculture with technology-led sustainable managed farm endeavors. Primarily engaged in farming activities, Zetta Farms strongly believes in uplifting the nation’s earliest pursuit, powered by the motto, ‘Desh ka culture Agriculture’. Zetta Farms currently holds 16,000 acres of

over 70 crops across over 14 states, and, as one of its growth engines, Growpital focuses mainly on mobilizing its investments at a reduced risk rate. “Farming or agriculture is contingent on financial support, but usually, bank loans do not cover working capital, which is why we introduced Growpital to retail investors. Acting as the mutual fund of agriculture, we channel investors’ funds to Zetta Farms, leveraging a win-win for both”, adds Rituraj Sharma. Besides, investors can also assess their potential earnings before investing, thereby equipping them to make well-informed decisions. Presently, its Assets Under Management (AUM) stands at Rs.145+ crores from over 4600+ investors and the company aims to raise around Rs.1000 crores in the near future.

Growpital has emerged as a genuine company, primarily by inducing transparency & demonstrating its actions

Rising Above the Hurdles
While its initial journey was filled with shattering people’s skepticism around its high-return assurance, Growpital has emerged as a genuine company, primarily by inducing transparency and demonstrating its actions. In addition, the regular updates given by the team also add immense value. The company also believes in gathering feedback from its investor community. “We are the only company that has an open channel on Telegram and Whatsapp where anyone can join, ask questions, and give feedback”, says Rituraj Sharma. However, Growpital prioritizes implementing suggested improvements only after considering the time, effort, and necessity involved.

The major strength of Growpital lies in its ability to provide fixed tax-free returns of around 14 percent, outperforming generic fixed deposits, while adhering to the ever-evolving regulations of the government under the guidance of its dedicated legal team. The company strives to enable efficient farming and return profits, which can be exemplified by its use of breakthroughs like drones. The drones empower its personnel to identify the exact areas of crop pests, saving time and costs on pesticides, in turn enhancing productivity and lowering production costs. Backed by such revolutionary ideas and an expert team of agronomists, the company is eyeing the expansion of its portfolio. “Our goals do not restrict us. Our initial plan was to cover 25,000 acres, and while we're currently at 16,000 acres, we are set to finalize an agreement for about 50,000 acres and reach beyond 60,000 acres”, shares Rituraj Sharma. Aspiring to become the most trustworthy alternative agri-investment platform, the company wishes to oversee around 1,50,000 acres in the next financial year.