Tata Kisan Sansar: Enabling, empowering

Kisan: farmer; Sansar: world; Parivar: family
The Tata Kisan Sansar (TKS) is a network of nearly 600 farmer resource centres that caters to more than 3.5 million farmers in 22000 villages in the northern and eastern part of India. The centres are one-stop solution shops that provide farmers access to a wide range of agricultural inputs such as vital fertilizers, seeds, and pesticides along with agricultural services such as soil testing, crop advisory and foliar application services. New services being explored include financial services and IT enabled market information.

Empowerment: The objective of the TKS network is to enable and empower the farmer in creating and generating more value for farm produce by providing information on new and improved agronomic practices and by facilitating better and more efficient use of agricultural inputs. The philosophy behind TKS is to become a change agent for the Indian farming community.

Structure: TKS functions as a hub and spoke model. Each TKS centre is a franchised retail outlet and solution provider that caters to about 30-40 villages in the surrounding area. The centres are in turn serviced by about 30-odd resource centres (known as Tata Krishi Vikas Kendras or TKVK), with each resource centre looking after 17-18 TKS centres.

Benefits: TKS provides the following
Access to expert advice: There are more than 60 agronomists available at the hubs to provide advice on crops and farming issues. There are more than 150 organisers at the TKS level.

Inputs: TKS centres provide generic as well as store brands of

	Fertilisers:	Urea, DAP, MOP, NPK, etc
	Specialty fertilisers:	Zinc sulphate, boron, micronutrients, calcium nitrate, organics, water soluble fertilisers
	Seeds:	Field crops, vegetable crops
	Pesticides:	Entire range
	Cattlefeed
	Farm implements

Training: In nutrient and pest management

Services:

	Soil and water testing
	Contract farming
	Seed production
	Application services
	Advisory services

Relationship building:

	Farmer membership (individual & group)
	Accident insurance to members
	Farmer meets
	Crop seminars