Technology-as-a-Service model to drive rural entrepreneurship. Agri-retail expansion and Drone-as-a-Service to modernize farm productivity. Structured credit facilitation under CM-YUVA to enable first-generation entrepreneurs.
AVPL International today announced a strategic association with DeHaat and Farmers City India Pvt. Ltd. (FCIPL) to jointly train approximately 1,40,000 agri and drone entrepreneurs across India over the next five years. This collaboration aims to establish one of India’s largest integrated rural entrepreneurship ecosystems by combining skill development, agri-retail expansion, drone technology deployment, electric mobility enablement and structured credit facilitation under a unified framework.
The key focus of the initiative is a structured “Technology-as-a-Service” model designed specifically for rural India. The objective is to ensure that every new and emerging technology reaching rural India is not just introduced, but delivered as a structured service that can actively transform the rural economy. By embedding technology directly within local enterprise ecosystems, this association will encourage youth towards entrepreneurship and would lead to modernisation of agricultural practices.
AVPL and Farmer’s City will establish and operate training centres across India, where DeHaat and AVPL will train youth as per curriculum aligned with NSDC and ASCI-certified standards to ensure nationally recognized qualifications and industry-relevant competencies. The Successful trainees will be supported in establishing agro-input retail stores under DeHaat’s dealership model, strengthening last-mile access to farm inputs, advisory services and technology solutions.
Pursuant to the training, the trained Drone Preneurs will be deployed within DeHaat’s retail network under a structured Drone-as-a-Service (DaaS) framework. These services will support precision spraying, crop health monitoring and data-driven advisory, helping to improve farm productivity. The integrated retail-plus-drone approach is designed to create a cohesive rural service ecosystem that combines inputs, advisory and technology deployment at the grassroots level. As part of the broader rural entrepreneurship strategy, the initiative will also promote EV-led enterprise opportunities .
In order to reduce entry barriers for first-generation entrepreneurs, this association will facilitate institutional credit access, including support under the Mukhyamantri Yuva Udyami Vikas Abhiyan (CM-YUVA) scheme in Uttar Pradesh. Joint bankable project proposals will be developed to enable eligible trainees to secure funding and establish their enterprises with structured financial backing.
Dr. Preet Sandhu, Founder and Managing Director, AVPL International, said, “At AVPL, we have always believed in staying on the front foot when it comes to promoting entrepreneurship in emerging sectors. The real potential of India lies in its rural youth, yet that potential often remains untapped due to lack of structured platform. Through our Technology-as-a-Service model, we are empowering rural youth to become job creators within their own region. This initiative reflects our long-term commitment to driving rural economic transformation through skill, technology and entrepreneurship.”
Tarish Pratap Singh, Head of Farmers services, Dehaat added, “This association will strengthen our retail ecosystem by embedding trained agri and drone entrepreneurs within our network. By combining advisory, inputs and technology services, we aim to enhance farmer productivity while expanding rural livelihood opportunities.”
With a strong focus on outcome-driven training, self-employment generation, and last-mile service delivery, this collaboration positions itself as a scalable blueprint for transforming rural economies through structured entrepreneurship and technology adoption.
