Madanapalle/Hyderabad, Oct 2 (Maxim News): Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Reliance Industries Executive Director Anant Ambani jointly unveiled the foundation stone for the proposed Indian School of Agriculture (ISA) in Madanapalle on Friday.
The institution is being developed with Reliance Industries as a partner and is planned on the lines of the Indian School of Business (ISB).
The Andhra Pradesh government and Reliance also signed a Memorandum of Understanding for establishing and managing the ISA.
The proposed school is part of Andhra Pradesh’s broader plan to strengthen agriculture and horticulture in Rayalaseema through technology, research, infrastructure and market linkages.
Anant Ambani described his participation in the initiative as an honour and asked Naidu to treat him as a “son of Andhra”.
He also assured the state government of Reliance Industries’ full support for the Indian School of Agriculture.
ISA to Focus on Digital Agriculture and Innovation
The proposed Indian School of Agriculture will focus on modern technology and scientific research aimed at addressing challenges faced by farmers.
Its areas of focus are expected to include digital agriculture, precision farming, crop monitoring, smart irrigation and market intelligence.
The institution will also provide technology-driven guidance to farmers and promote demand-based crop cultivation.
The school is also expected to support agricultural startups through incubation centres and encourage innovation in the agriculture and allied sectors.
Plans include developing solutions related to soil, seeds, crop selection, climate resilience, irrigation and post-harvest management.
The broader objective is to connect farm-level production with technology, processing and markets.
The ISA proposal was first announced by Naidu in March 2026. At a district collectors’ conference, he called for an agricultural institution on the lines of the Indian School of Business and said it should use AI-based agritech solutions to address challenges in the farm sector.
In July, Naidu told Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman that the proposed ISA would focus on AI in agriculture, digital farming, climate sustainability, post-harvest systems and global market intelligence.
The Madanapalle project is also expected to become part of the state’s wider agriculture and horticulture development strategy for Rayalaseema.
The Global Horticulture Hub launched alongside the initiative is planned across 10 districts, with a proposed overall investment of about ₹1 lakh crore.
The government has described the ISA as an institution intended to bring advanced agricultural technology and research closer to farmers while strengthening innovation, entrepreneurship and market-oriented agriculture. (Maxim News)
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