With many opting for fresh pesticide-free produce, organic farming is where everyone is turning their attention to. Shashi Kumar, in a bid to boost the country’s agrarian economy, left his high-paying job at Wipro after 13 years to start his own company…
Meet Akshayakalpa Organic CEO Shashi Kumar
Shashi Kumar is the CEO of Akshayakalpa Organic, India’s first organic milk company. The organic brand was founded by Kumar in 2010. It’s based in Bengaluru. According to DNA India, Akshayakalpa Organic produces milk and sells milk products that are free from antibiotics, synthetic additives, hormones and chemical pesticide residue.
Shashi Kumar hails from a farming family and envisioned Akshayakalpa Organic when he realised the challenges and economic viability that farmers with small and medium landholding face. In a bid to combat these challenges and enable rural entrepreneurship and wealth creation among small and marginalized farmers, the businessman embarked on his entrepreneurial journey as demand increased for organic and sustainable products.
It’s been more than a decade since Akshayakalpa Organic has been catering to 10,000+ customers in cities like Bengaluru, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune, and more, and has been working with over 600 farms with 400 skilled employees. According to the Times of India, Akshayakalpa Organic has an impressive turnover of Rs 260 crore in FY23.
“Our main aim is to address the bilateral problem of eco non-viability in dairy farming and agriculture, which entails farmers to either move away from farming, or resort to means such as chemical fertilisers and pesticides leading to poor-quality of food for the consumer,” Shashi Kumar shared about his goal behind establishing Akshayakalpa Organic, with Times of India. The company explores technology induction and automation of small farms by interlacing smart techniques with traditional farming methods.
Shashi Kumar’s long stint at Wipro
Kumar had a longstanding association with Azim Premji’s IT corporation. According to Shashi’s LinkedIn account, the entrepreneur gained 17 years of experience in the Telecommunications Industry prior to Akshayakalpa Organic. Kumar spent 13 of those years at Wipro.
Shashi Kumar joined Wipro in 1998 as a System Engineer and eventually got promoted to Sr. System Engineer. In 2001, he was made Architect – Telecommunication Protocol Stacks, which transformed into Architect – Next Generation Telecom Software Solutions. His last designation before quitting Wipro in July 2011 was Lead Architect – Service Delivery Platforms.
Shashi Kumar’s educational qualifications
Shashi Kumar comes equipped with a strong educational background. The ex-Wipro employee holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering from Bangalore University, and a Master’s Degree in Telecommunication Engineering, Software and Telecom Engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), Chicago.
