To meet the food requirements of a country, maintaining good agricultural productivity is crucial. India, like most countries, relies heavily on fertilizers for this. In the long term, if used excessively, the two main components of fertilizers—urea and diammonium phosphate (DAP)—can deeply damage the health of soil. However, in the short term, they can boost crop yields, and government subsidies lower their costs, helping them outcompete more environmentally sustainable alternatives. Thus, small and marginal farmers continue using them and worsening their detrimental effects.

One solution to this problem is to employ laboratory testing to check soil quality, then show the results to farmers—but unfortunately, government laboratories have limited capacity, and private options are expensive. 

It was to meet the need for affordable, reliable soil testing that Saumya Rawat and Dhiraj Choudhary founded Ekosight Technologies in 2021. Their innovation—the ‘Soil Doctor’ clinic—is helping democratize soil science across India.

The Soil Doctor model

When it was launched, Ekosight noticed that people across rural India are migrating to cities, further weakening the agricultural sector. Thus, while it developed its core agricultural technology, it also resolved to train local technicians in using said technology, creating incentives to stay on in their villages.

At a typical Soil Doctor clinic, Ekosight accepts soil samples from farmers, detects their composition, then provides suggestions on how to improve soil quality. 

The detection process is as simple as placing a soil sample in a testing device and receiving information on various components. These include physical nutrients (pH, organic carbon, etc.), macronutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, etc.), micronutrients (zinc, iron, etc.), and other health indicators (e.g., cation exchange capacity).

Once the soil profile has been constructed, the local technicians explain the results to the respective farmers. They also discuss which farming inputs can benefit which soil parameters. All of these inputs will be available at the same clinic.

What is Ekosight’s business model?

To finance its operations, Ekosight depends on NGO and CSR partners who are interested in creating social impact in rural India. The Indian government’s Nidhi Prayas and RKVY-RAFTAAR schemes, as well as incubation funding from Social Alpha and Villgro, have also helped it scale as a startup.

Beyond running its own testing facilities, Ekosight offers agri-retailers the opportunity to invest in its Soil Doctor clinics and thus provide more value to customers. In Uttar Pradesh, the startup works specifically with rural women, helping them start their own Soil Doctor clinics so that they can build financial autonomy. This initiative is known as the Soil Didi campaign.

Impact created so far

As of 2026, Ekosight is active in 16 Indian states. Through its 100+ Soil Doctor clinics, it has provided soil testing services for 15,000+ farmers in total and helped them better understand how to incorporate less harmful farming inputs. These farmers have consequently seen 15–20% higher crop yields. Moreover, women employed through the Soil Didi campaign have reported earning an average of INR 12,500–15,000 per month by running their own clinics. 

Each soil test can be completed and the results given to the farmer within one or two hours. This entire process costs no more than INR 500–750, in contrast to the INR 1,000–1,200 for government soil testing and INR 5,000–6,000 at other private facilities. There is no loss in accuracy for Ekosight’s testing device—in fact, rather than considering the six soil parameters that competitors do, it takes into account eighteen. This means that it constructs a much more holistic representation of soil composition.

Ekosight has been acknowledged by a number of institutions for its contributions to sustainable agriculture. For example, in 2025, at the Global Bio India event organized by BIREC, it won the Best Startup Award in Agriculture. The same year, it also received IARI Pusa’s Best Startup Award.

Recommendations for policy

According to co-founder Saumya Rawat, policymakers can help Ekosight scale its impact on the ground by creating clear guidelines for service development and deployment. This would streamline the process of securing not only approval for research but also certification for customers, which plays a major role in building public trust. 

With these steps, and given more options for long-term funding, startups like Ekosight can use agritech to fill the gaps in rural India and make farming lucrative once more. The ultimate consequence would, of course, be strengthened food security for millions.