A government-backed rural development initiative partnered with private and CSR stakeholders to digitally empower farmers and Self-Help Groups (SHGs) with end-to-end market access, advisory services, and business opportunities.

The challenge

How can rural farmers and SHGs overcome fragmented support systems and limited market access?

Despite significant efforts across the public and private sectors, rural producers, especially farmers and Self-Help Groups (SHGs), continued to face systemic hurdles. These included disconnected advisory services, weak formal market integration, limited digital enablement, and constrained credit access. As a result, productivity remained low and economic participation limited. The central challenge was to converge fragmented efforts into a scalable, cohesive model that could unlock inclusive rural growth.

How we helped

Scaling inclusive development through ecosystem-led partnerships

Grant Thornton Bharat collaborated with the government and broad network of private sector partners to design and implement PPP models across the agriculture and rural value chain. We enabled the mobilisation of CSR capital to support FPO-led initiatives and delivered integrated services in input facilitation, crop and policy advisory, credit linkage, and market access. For SHGs, we helped establish both offline and digital commerce platforms, onboarded producers to open digital commerce systems, and aligned product marketing with national initiatives such as “One District One Product” and “Make in India.”

The results

Stronger linkages, scalable impact, and self-reliant communities

Our efforts led to increased formal market integration, especially for women-led SHGs, who gained access to digital commerce networks and large-scale trade events. Farmers saw a measurable boost in productivity and input access, as well as direct connections to buyers. The initiative validated the power of multi-stakeholder convergence to drive rural transformation at scale, fostering resilient, self-reliant rural communities and inclusive economic progress.

Our partnership-driven approach placed rural producers at the centre of the solution. By aligning public vision with private sector execution, we enabled sustainable livelihoods, empowered women entrepreneurs, and proved that inclusive development is scalable with the right ecosystem.
Prof. V. Padmanand Partner and Agriculture Industry Leader

About our team

Agri and Allied Consulting Services at Grant Thornton Bharat delivers end-to-end solutions across India’s agricultural and rural development ecosystem. We work with government agencies, private enterprises, multilateral organisations, and civil society to catalyse sustainable impact. From policy to field execution, our capabilities span food processing, agri-infrastructure, irrigation, horticulture, and rural entrepreneurship. We specialise in building climate-resilient value chains, strengthening FPOs, promoting digital agriculture, and advancing inclusive financial access — all with the aim of transforming rural India into a globally competitive agri-economy.
Prof. V. Padmanand
Prof. V. Padmanand
Partner and Agriculture Industry Leader