Agenda

AgroSpectrum Technovate 2026

March 12-13, 2026
CIDCO Exhibition & Convention Centre, Navi Mumbai

Theme: "Transforming Agriculture through Innovation and Technology"

Day I – 12th MARCH 2026

Registration

Inauguration

Chief Guest – Shri Dattatray Bharne*, Min of Agriculture, GoM.

Guest of Honour – Mr. Vikas Chandra Rastogi*, Secretary, Agriculture Govt of Maha.

Vision Talk: Prof Ramesh Chand, Member, NITI Aayog - Leveraging Advanced Technologies to Revolutionise Indian Agriculture

(Focus: Robotics, AI, drones, blockchain, and next-gen farming models)

Tea Break

Session 1 – Panel discussion

AgriTech for Atmanirbhar Bharat

(Focus: Role of agro technology in self-reliance, food security, supply-chain digitization, and policy alignment)

Moderator - Dr. Kesavan, Group President - Corporate Relations & Alliances – TAFE Ltd

  • Dr. Amey Pangarkar, Marketing and AI consultant, AConsultancy - Milind
  • Dr. Saravanan Raj, CEO, MANAGE-Centre for Innovation and Agripreneurship (CIA) & Director (Agricultural Extension) National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management (MANAGE)
  • Mr. Agnishwar Jayaprakash* ,Founder & CEO - Garuda Aerospace Pvt. Ltd
  • Mr. Shrikant Deo*, VP-Innovation - Reliance Innovation Leadership Centre

Session 2 - Panel discussion

Satellite Data for Crop Insurance & Credit Access

(Focus: Improving PMFBY and agri-finance risk assessment)

Mr Ajay Kakra, Leader - Food and Agriculture, Government, Infrastructure and Development Sector Advisory Services, Forvis Mazars in India

Lunch Break

Session 3 – Presentations

Carbon Credits & Measurement, Reporting & Verification (MRV) Technologies

(Focus: Measurement, reporting, and verification at scale)

Chair – Mr. Karthikeyan, ED, Human Ventures

  • Mr. Shailendra Singh Rao*, Founder and MD, Creduce
  • Mr. Anirudh Keny*, Director of Credit Sales, Boomitra

Session 4 – Presentations

Gene Editing, Seeds & Policy Readiness in India

(Focus: CRISPR, regulation, and farmer adoption)

Chair – Mr. Rajvir Singh Rathi, Director Public Affairs, Science and Sustainability (South Asia), Bayer crop Science

  • Dr. A. K. Singh, Former Director, IARI
  • Dr. Viswanathan, Jt Director - Research, IARI, Delhi
  • Dr. Priti Savairam, Dy. Director - Seed, Agri Dept, GoM

Coffee break

Session 5 - Panel discussion

Next-Gen Biofertilizers & Biostimulants

(Focus: Scaling biologicals with data and diagnostics)

Moderator- Ms. Sandipa Kanitkar, CMD, Kanbiosys

  • Dr. Urvashi Vashist, Deputy Director - Biotechnology Affairs
  • Dr. Satilal Patil, MD – Green Vision Life Sciences
  • Dr. Nitin Maurya, Head-INSPIRE-MANAK, National Innovation Foundation

Session 6 – Fireside chat

Digital Krishi – Technology empowered Indian farmer

(Focus: AI, IoT, drones, fintech, and digital platforms transforming Indian agriculture)

Session 7 – Panel discussion

CEO Conclave

Moderator- Komal Shah Bhukhanwala, Director, R&D, SML Ltd. - Vibha

  • Mr. Huzefa Khorakiwala*, CEO, Biostadt
  • Mr. Gyanendra Shukla*, MD and CEO, Rallies India Ltd
  • Mr. Jitender Kumar*, MD - BIRAC

Networking dinner

Day II – 13th MARCH 2026

Session 8 – Presentations

Smart Farms, Sustainable Future

(Focus: Climate resilience, water efficiency, renewable energy, and sustainable agri-tech)

Chair – Dr. Y G Prasad, Former Director, Central Institute for Cotton Research

  • Mr. V K Singh, Director, Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture
  • Mr. Sachin Kulkarni, Head Marketing, Haifa group
  • Mr. Agam Khare*, Founder and CEO, Absolute AG - Kusum

Coffee Break

Session 9 – Panel discussion

Regenerative Agriculture Enabled by Technology

(Focus: Soil health monitoring, bio-inputs, and data platforms)

Moderator – Dr. Mangi Lal Jat*, Secretary, DARE, DG, ICAR

  • Dr. Bhagirath Chaudhary, Founder Director, South Asian Biotechnology Centre

Session 10 – Presentations

Public Digital Infrastructure for Agriculture

(Focus: AgriStack, DPI, data governance, and privacy)

Chair – Mr. Sudhirkumar Goel, Member Advisory Board, Erde Agro

  • Ms. Pragati Gokhale, Mission MarketMirchi, IIT Bombay Rural Technology Group – Dipak

Lunch Break

Session 11 – Panel discussion

Embedded Finance in Agri-Tech Platforms

(Focus: Credit, insurance, and input financing via digital rails)

Moderator- Mr. Vikas Bhatt, MD, NabVentures

  • Mr. Abhilash Sethi*, Investment Director, Omnivore - Kusum
  • Mr. Vivek Sinha*, Team Lead, Fund Manager, ACCESS Development Services

Session 12 – Panel Discussion

Biopesticides and Green Chemicals

(Focus: Behavioral insights, trust, and last-mile delivery)

Moderator – Dr. P. K. Chakrabarty, Chief Scientific Advisor, Dhanuka Agrotech

  • Dr. Rahul Mirchandani, CMD – Aries Agro
  • Mr. Prashant Hegade*, MD – FMC India
  • Mr. Vipin Kumar*, Chief Scientist, NIF, Gandhinagar

Concluding remarks and Vote of Thanks

High Tea

**Please note that the agenda is tentative and may be subject to confirmations