Pune Entrepreneur Aniket Mind Wins National Startup Maharathi Challenge, Secures Rs 10 Lakh Grant
New Delhi/Baramati, 18th April 2025: Aniket Gorakh Mind, a young entrepreneur from Pune’s Baramati, has won first prize at the prestigious National Startup Maharathi Challenge in the Agritech category, earning widespread recognition and a Rs 10 lakh grant for his innovative work. The competition, held in New Delhi, saw participation from 3,900 startups across India. Aniket was felicitated by Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal during the event.
Hailing from a farming family and having experienced the financial challenges of labour-intensive agriculture, Aniket founded Spark Agro in 2019 at Baramati MIDC. His startup designs and manufactures affordable agricultural tools such as power tillers, power weeders, and spray pumps aimed at small and marginal farmers. Despite initial setbacks during the COVID-19 pandemic, Aniket’s perseverance and deep understanding of agriculture helped him build a successful business that now reaches farmers nationwide through an online Shopify store.
Aniket, originally from Hol village in Baramati taluka and a mechanical engineering graduate from Pune, initially ventured into motorsports before dedicating himself to developing cost-effective farming equipment. His startup has also generated employment for over a dozen youth in the region, contributing to local economic growth.
