Mumbai : The Mahindra group is putting in place a growth model for its tractor business which will see agriculture play a key role. "Our intent is to create and deliver farm-tech prosperity. The way forward is to focus on agriculture productivity through mechanisation solutions, providing education and the right inputs to farmers," Gautam Nagwekar, chief executive of Mahindra farm equipment sector, told reporters.

Contract farming is an important aspect of the value-addition exercise and M&M is examining a host of crops such as corn and soya to provide specific solutions. According to Nagwekar, the two challenges are to work with farmers and then find access to markets, either here or abroad. "The key is to zero in on the business model of contract farming and we are, therefore, looking at crop specific solutions," he said.

"The challenge is to touch thousands of farmers and do contract farming for a crop which adds value," Narwekar said.

As part of the drive towards creation of farm-tech prosperity, M&M has kicked off the process of converting dealerships into Samridhi centres housing soil and water testing facilities. Nearly 75 such centres were formed in 2009 with plans to add more this fiscal. An alliance has been formed with the University of Wisconsin, where a senior scientist has been roped in for this initiative. His job is to train technicians at the Samridhi centres on drawing soil samples and testing them. "We then counsel the farmer on the fertilizer to be used to get the best from his farm," he said.

M&M has instituted the Mahindra Kissan No 1 award to acknowledge farmers' efforts in this direction. The Mahindra Samridhi Samman is an event to felicitate them with cash prizes.