This IIT-B Scientist Built the World’s Smallest Soil Tester — Now 15000 Farmers Are Transforming Their Fields

This article was originally published on the NITI Frontier Tech Respository.

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In the agricultural heartlands of India, one woman’s innovation is transforming how farmers understand their soil. Dr. Rajul Patkar, co-founder and CEO of Proximal Soilsens Technologies, has developed NutriSens, a portable, affordable, and user-friendly soil testing device hailed as the world’s smallest of its kind.

Inspired during her PhD at IIT Bombay over a decade ago, Dr. Patkar envisioned a tool that could simplify soil diagnostics in the same way glucometers revolutionised diabetes care. Her idea was simple: if blood can be tested in seconds at home, why not soil?

The resulting device, NutriSens, uses paper-based sensor strips to measure six critical parameters — pH, electrical conductivity, nitrate, phosphate, potassium, and another major nutrient — in less than five minutes, using only one gram of soil. 

The results are immediately available on a mobile app, along with a downloadable soil health card. This not only eliminates the traditional two-week wait for lab reports but empowers farmers with real-time data to make informed decisions about fertiliser usage.

Reviving depleted lands with smart, swift science

India’s agricultural output has become increasingly dependent on excessive chemical fertiliser use, a trend which masks the deepening crisis of deteriorating soil health. In the 1970s, farmers used around 54 kg of fertilisers per hectare for a yield of 2 tonnes; today, that number exceeds 280 kg for the same yield. The cause? A lack of access to timely, localised soil diagnostics.

Dr. Patkar’s innovation directly addresses this issue. With just 3,000 soil testing labs to serve 14 crore farmers, the existing system was clearly insufficient. NutriSens offers a decentralised, rapid, and affordable alternative.

Farmers can now test their fields directly, skipping delays and guesswork. In regions like Solapur, farmers have already begun switching from urea to organic alternatives like cow dung after receiving immediate, actionable insights from the device.

From field tool to livelihood engine

What began as a scientific tool is now evolving into a grassroots enterprise model. Dr. Patkar’s team has trained and empowered rural women to become soil health entrepreneurs, travelling between farms to conduct tests and interpret results.

Priced at Rs 35,000 — about half the cost of alternatives — the device enables users to earn back their investment within one cropping season. In Maharashtra, Mangal Dhumal, one such microentrepreneur, has served over 30 farmers across multiple villages, offering both scientific insight and economic opportunity.

To date, NutriSens has been used by agripreneurs across states including Assam, Punjab, Telangana, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan, reaching an estimated 10,000 to 15,000 farmers.

The device has a lifespan of three years and can handle approximately 3,000 tests annually, reducing the cost of individual testing from ₹500 in private labs to Rs 300 in the field.

Democratising access to soil intelligence

Dr. Patkar’s NutriSens initiative resonates strongly with India’s broader policy architecture. It reinforces Digital India and Skill India by offering app-enabled diagnostics and building digital capacity among rural entrepreneurs. It supports Soil Health Management under the National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture by enabling precise, hyperlocal interventions to reverse land degradation.

By promoting data-driven farming and reducing input costs, the device furthers the objectives of Doubling Farmers’ Income and contributes to the goals of Viksit Bharat through inclusive, technology-led rural empowerment.

NutriSens brings laboratory-grade analytics to the farmer’s doorstep and puts critical decisions back in their hands. By democratising access to soil intelligence, the device not only strengthens individual livelihoods but also contributes to the nation’s food security and ecological resilience. If scaled effectively, it could usher in a new era of precision agriculture—made in India, for India.

To read more such stories, visit NITI Frontier Tech Repository.

Sources: 

‘Pune Scientist’s Portable Device Helps Farmers Check Soil Health in Just a Few Minutes’: By Shivani Gupta, Published on 16 May 2023.