- Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna together have invested some ₹100 crores in their tech start-up Bharuwa solution.
- The new generation tech0start up takes care of Patanjali’s supply chain management, retail billing and anything related to stocking and managing Patanjali’s inventories.
Ever imagined how made in India FMCG Company handles its supply chain and such huge inventory which is not only going in different parts of the country but reaching out to NRIs in a foreign land as well? This is done by Bharuwa Solutions – a tech-startup by Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balakrishna – the duo behind Patanjali FMCG brand.
But recently our made in India FMCG company has been sitting silently and losing some worth in the market due to which some of the investors have pulled out their hands from the venture.
Realizing this, Patanjali duo is back with a bang with its 100-crore funded tech start-up – the Bharuwa solution which comes from 5 patented technologies.
Bharuwa Solution – What is the start-up all about?
As mentioned, Bharuwa Solution is a byproduct of 5 patented technologies that have deep roots in supply chain management, distribution, soil testing, fertilizer calculations, and backward linkage.
We can sum-up Patanjali’s tech start-up as an initiative to boost the productivity of farmers and raw materials whose quality will be resonated and duly checked by Bharuwa Solution.
“Necessity is the mother of invention. When you are in a crisis you need to find out novel ways of coming out of it. We realized we needed to think differently to solve our supply chain challenge.” – Acharya Balkrishna.
Patanjali’s revenue dropped down heavily after reaching revenue of INR 10,000 crores between 2011-17. In 2018-19, the company reported a very nominal growth of just 2.38%.
The slow growth in revenue is resonated by heavy jerks in the economy like demonetization followed by GST. This not only affected the growth of Patanjali but almost all FMCG companies and other industries overall.
“We moved to a new tax regime, but our supply chain and distribution network was as per the VAT era. Some MNCs were prepared for GST, but we hadn’t thought about complications. Now we have made the required corrections and are ready for the next phase of growth.” – Says Balkrishna.
Issues with taxes and a new form of money were not enough to create problems for Patanjali. But it was during that time the duo realized the importance of technology, SAP-based solution providers and the likewise things.
“We realized that our supply chain had to be en-to-end. We needed real-time data right from product sourcing to when our product reached to end-user. We felt we should make it as per our requirements and timelines and when we developed the product (Bharuwa Solution) it turned out to be an industry-fit, so we got it patented and registered our self as an IT start-up.” – Says Balkrishna.
The most differentiating thing about Bharuwa Solution is that the platform offers real-time data from sourcing end to end-user. Bharuwa Solution is said to be browser-based single software through which the tech start-up aims to offer end to end solutions.
Can Bharuwa Solution Turn Out to Be A Superstar Product for Farmers?
Let’s not forget that agriculture is the backbone of India. But if we were to compare our agricultural practices with other country’s practices, we are some 10-15 years behind.
An Indian farmer today is still dependent on cows and his hands to be able to reap the crop. Whereas a Canadian farmer simply listens to his favorite tunes while big machines do all the stuff on his behalf.
Let’s also not forget the fact that, Patanjali’s tech start-up also offers soil testing, fertilizer calculation through its ‘Dharti ka Doctor’ feature.
“All fertilizer calculation apps till now only calculate chemical fertilizers; our app also calculates organic fertilizer. It will give whole lot of solutions as per the farmer’s soil condition.” – Explains Balkrishna.
‘Annadata’ app offers backward linkage and traceability mechanisms. The FMCG company also launched the point-of-sales retail app, which enables retailers to order products online.
Summing Up:
Patanjali’s tech-startup might just be a gamechanger not only for the company but to the farmers overall spread countrywide. But is Bharuwa Solution going to be provided to all the farmers of the country? Maybe yes… Maybe no.
Amidst all the cash crunches, disturbance in the stock market .. this Patanjali duo has come up with something exciting, deep-pocketed and rich with features. We wish all the best for its behemoth success in the market.
