JAMMU, 14 May 2025: As India grapples with the twin challenges of agricultural sustainability and youth employment, experts are calling for stronger linkages between academia and industry to accelerate innovation, enhance productivity, and generate new opportunities across the agri-value chain.
Agriculture, the backbone of India’s economy, contributes significantly to the country's GDP and employs nearly half the workforce. Yet, systemic challenges—particularly the lack of robust market and institutional linkages—continue to hinder the sector’s full potential. Experts argue that forward and backward linkages are crucial to ensure access to inputs, stable markets, post-harvest infrastructure, and technology transfer for millions of farmers.
"Effective linkages between farmers and markets, combined with academic-industry collaborations, are essential to stabilizing farmer incomes, reducing losses, and advancing sustainable practices," said Dr. Navneet Anand, Director of Sustainability Matters. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), such efforts also play a role in reducing price volatility and ensuring food security.
A significant development in this direction has been the growing effort to integrate youth into the sector. With India’s demographic dividend offering a unique opportunity, the government and academic institutions have been pushing entrepreneurship and skill development initiatives in agriculture and allied sectors. Agricultural universities currently produce around 21,000 graduates annually, with many lacking adequate practical training or job placement.
In response, universities across the country are forging stronger ties with industry. These linkages are designed to bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and real-world applications through collaborative research, industry internships, co-designed curriculum, and mentorship by professionals.
A leading example is Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology (SKUAST), Jammu. Under the leadership of Vice Chancellor Prof. B. N. Tripathi, the university hosted an industry-academia meet to enhance entrepreneurship, collaboration, and skill-building. “We are encouraging problem-oriented research and urging industries to invest in partnerships that can uplift our farming community,” Prof. Tripathi said. The university has placed students across sectors like seed technology, farm machinery, and plant health to enhance their hands-on skills.
These partnerships not only improve student employability but also facilitate technology transfer and the development of new, location-specific solutions. Through initiatives like research parks, industry-relations cells, and CSR-backed R&D, academia and industry are working together to meet the evolving needs of Indian agriculture.
Government-backed programs like SPARC (Scheme for Promotion of Academic and Research Collaboration), IMPRINT (Impacting Research Innovation & Technology), and Uchhatar Aavishkar Yojana (UAY) further bolster these efforts by supporting joint research and innovation projects.
However, experts caution that challenges remain. Aligning academic research with market needs and resolving intellectual property rights (IPR) issues are crucial for sustaining long-term collaborations.
Ultimately, academia-industry linkages are proving to be a powerful catalyst for transforming Indian agriculture. By aligning knowledge, innovation, and market access, these partnerships are equipping the next generation of professionals to drive sustainable development and rural prosperity.
Image credit: ruralvoice.in
