What ICAR-Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture does

ICAR-Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture (ICAR-CRIDA) is a government research institute headquartered in Santoshnagar, Hyderabad, India, operating under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) within the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare, Government of India. Established in April 1985 by upgrading the AICRPDA coordinating cell (launched in 1970 with Canadian International Development Agency support), CRIDA is the national institute for basic and strategic research on rainfed agriculture, addressing the roughly 40% of India's net sown area that depends on uncertain rainfall and contributes about 40% of national foodgrain output. Its core technical footprint comprises 15 specialised laboratories (soil physics, soil chemistry, plant physiology, agronomy, microbiology, plant molecular biology, entomology, pathology, hydrology, agroforestry, horticulture, animal sciences, GIS, and central analytical services) and 320 hectares of research farms at Hayathnagar and Gunegal.

CRIDA's product surface is organised around three flagship network programmes - NICRA (climate resilience, nodal since 2011), AICRPDA (25 dryland agriculture centres), and AICRPAM (25 agrometeorology centres) - and a portfolio of decision-support systems, climate risk indices, crop contingency plans, agromet advisory bulletins, and 20+ agricultural technologies (zero tillage equipment, biochar kilns, rainwater harvesting packages, and conservation agriculture tools). The institute is funded entirely through Government of India budget allocations (plan and non-plan), supplemented by extramural grants from DBT, DST, and CSIR. Its go-to-market is community-led: technologies are disseminated through the national KVK extension network, state agricultural universities, and direct engagement with state agriculture departments, with no commercial pricing or paid customer relationships. CRIDA is led by Acting Director Dr. Vinod Kumar Singh and has received sustained recognition including the Sardar Patel Outstanding ICAR Research Institute Award (2014) and the Hari Om Ashram Award (2015).

Name

ICAR-Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture

Legal name

ICAR-Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture

Website

https://www.icar-crida.res.in

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ICAR-CRIDA is a Government of India research institute in Hyderabad that develops technologies for rainwater management, soil health, and climate-resilient dryland farming, serving rainfed farmers, state agricultural universities, and government departments through three flagship network programmes (NICRA, AICRPDA, AICRPAM), 15 laboratories, and 320 hectares of research farms.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Research Services

NAICS

Support Activities for Crop Production (11511)

SIC

Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)

akta.pro primary industry

Disaster Risk Reduction & Climate Risk Management (BPADALAK)

Keywords

• Dryland agriculture research
• Rainfed farming technologies
• Climate resilient agriculture
• Agrometeorological advisory services
• Agricultural extension services

Headquarters

HQ city

Hyderabad

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Government Funding: As an ICAR institute under Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare, Government of India, CRIDA receives government budget allocation for research operations. Non-plan recurring budget includes pay & allowances, traveling allowances, and other charges. Plan budget covers equipment, works, and contingent expenditure.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

ICAR-CRIDA is a national government research institute that develops and disseminates technologies, practices, and advisory services for sustainable rainfed/dryland agriculture in India. It operates coordinated research networks (AICRPDA, AICRPAM, NICRA) across 50+ centers, provides web-enabled decision support systems, weather-based agro-advisories, district-level crop contingency plans, and a portfolio of climate-resilient agricultural technologies. The institute supports Indian farmers, state agricultural universities, and government departments through research, capacity building, and extension services.

Product overview

ICAR-CRIDA is a premier Indian government research institute focused on sustainable rainfed agriculture. The organization operates as an umbrella of research programs rather than a unified commercial product platform. Its core offerings include multiple Decision Support Systems (Crop Pest DSS, YIELD GAP DSS, Dynamic Crop Weather Calendar), weather and climate services (Agromet Advisory, Seasonal Rainfall Monitoring), and risk management tools (Climate Risk Indices, Crop Contingency Plans). These are supported by three flagship network research programs: NICRA (climate resilience), AICRPAM (agrometeorology), and AICRPDA (dryland agriculture). Additional offerings encompass extension services (Seed Hub, KVK), knowledge products (publications, technical bulletins), research laboratory facilities, and a portfolio of 20+ agricultural technologies spanning organic production, rainwater harvesting, conservation agriculture, and farm mechanization. The portfolio is accessible through the institute's website with interactive tools for district-level agricultural planning.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Crop Pest Descriptive Support System (Crop Pest DSS) Web-enabled decision support system for crop protection that provides pest forecasting and management advisories based on weather parameters, used by researchers, extension workers, and farmers.
• YIELD GAP DSS Decision support system for assessing and bridging yield gaps in major rainfed crops to identify unreaped yield potentials.
• Dynamic Crop Weather Calendar Innovative decision support system providing real-time crop weather information for climate-resilient agriculture planning.
• Climate Risk and Vulnerability Indices Interactive tool for assessing climate risk and vulnerability across Indian states and districts with multiple category and hazard indices.
• Agromet Advisory Service National Agromet Advisory Service Bulletin based on Extended Range Weather Forecast (ERFS) providing weather-based agricultural advisories to farmers across India.
• Seasonal Rainfall Monitoring Daily rainfall monitoring and progress reports across different meteorological sub-divisions of India with departure from normal percentages.
• Crop Contingency Plans District-level agricultural contingency plans for managing delayed monsoon, seasonal drought, and other weather aberrations across all Indian states.
• NICRA (National Innovations in Climate Resilient Agriculture) ICAR flagship network project for generating climate adaptation and mitigation technologies and information for agriculture, with CRIDA as the Nodal Institute.
• Seed Hub Services Seed production and distribution services for climate-resilient crop varieties suitable for rainfed agriculture.
• Agricultural Technologies Portfolio Portfolio of 20+ technologies including drought proofing methodologies, organic production packages, rainwater harvesting systems, conservation agriculture practices, and farm mechanization tools.
• KVK (Krishi Vigyan Kendra) Services Technology dissemination and capacity building for farmers through Krishi Vigyan Kendra located at Hayathnagar Research Farm for Ranga Reddy district.
• Central Laboratory Analytical Services Analytical services provided to institutions and individuals on payment basis through the Central Laboratory covering soil, plant, water, and other agricultural samples.

Quantifiable outcome

• AICRPDA centres across India generating location-specific technologies
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• AICRPDA Network (All India Coordinated Research Project for Dryland Agriculture)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork of 25 cooperating centres spread across the country coordinated from CRIDA, Hyderabad. Identified based on moisture deficit index for location-specific dryland agriculture research.
• AICRPAM Network (All India Coordinated Research Project on Agrometeorology)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork of 25 cooperating centres under different SAUs for agrometeorological research and weather-based advisory services.
• ICRISAT (International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational research organization focused on semi-arid tropical agriculture. Collaborates on dryland crop research and climate resilience technologies.
• ILRI (International Livestock Research Institute)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational research organization working on livestock research for developing countries. Collaboration on integrated farming systems including livestock components.
• IWMI (International Water Management Institute)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational research organization focused on sustainable water management solutions. Collaboration on rainwater harvesting, watershed management, and water use efficiency.
• ANGRAU (Acharya N.G. Ranga Agricultural University)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerState Agricultural University in Andhra Pradesh. Collaboration on research, training, and technology dissemination in dryland agriculture.
• JNTU (Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechnical university collaboration for engineering solutions, ICT tools, and technology development for agriculture.
• University of DelhiminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic collaboration for research and postgraduate education support.
• Osmania UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic collaboration where CRIDA scientists are recognized faculty members guiding masters and doctoral research programmes.
• CSIR (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment research organization collaboration for specialized research projects in dryland agriculture.
• DBT (Department of Biotechnology)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment department providing funding and collaboration for biotechnology research in agriculture.
• DST (Department of Science and Technology)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment department collaboration for science and technology research projects.
• IMD (India Meteorological Department)coreTechnology or IntegrationNational meteorological department. CRIDA takes inputs from IMD for generating value-added weather outputs and agro-advisories for farmers.
• NCMRWF (National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting)coreTechnology or IntegrationWeather forecasting agency providing inputs for agrometeorological research and weather-based advisory services.
• Government of Andhra PradeshmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerState government collaboration for consultancy programs and implementation of dryland development projects.
• Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInitial collaboration during 1970-1985 for establishing AICRPDA network under Government of Canada support.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• ICRISAT (International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics): CGIAR-affiliated international research institute focused on semi-arid tropical agriculture — overlapping directly with CRIDA's dryland mandate on crop improvement, climate resilience and smallholder farmer systems. ICRISAT is also an existing CRIDA partner.
• ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI): India's premier ICAR research institute covering crops, horticulture and plant protection. Sister ICAR institute with overlapping scientific depth, lab infrastructure and national-coordination role, and a comparable government funding model.
• ICAR-National Rice Research Institute (NRRI): ICAR institute focused on rice systems research including rainfed rice. Comparable mandate structure, AICRP-coordinated centre network and government funding profile.
• CIMMYT (International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center): CGIAR center driving global research on maize, wheat and conservation agriculture in dryland systems. Comparable mandate on climate-resilient cropping systems and smallholder technology dissemination.
• IRRI (International Rice Research Institute): CGIAR center for rice research, with significant work on rainfed rice and climate adaptation. Closely comparable as a non-profit, internationally-networked agricultural research organisation.
• IFPRI (International Food Policy Research Institute): CGIAR research institute providing policy-oriented research on agriculture, food security and climate resilience. Comparable as a research-to-policy translation organisation serving government decision-makers.
• ICAR-Central Institute for Cotton Research (CICR): ICAR institute for cotton research, including rainfed cotton systems. Closely comparable as another crop-focused ICAR research institute with AICRP coordination, lab infrastructure and KVK dissemination.
• International Water Management Institute (IWMI): CGIAR water-focused research institute, existing CRIDA partner, working on rainwater harvesting, watershed management and water use efficiency — directly overlapping CRIDA's hydrology and on-farm reservoir work.

Broad incumbents

• CGIAR System Organization: Umbrella coordinating entity for 15 international agricultural research centres including ICRISAT, CIMMYT, IRRI and IFPRI. Operates at a broader portfolio level but covers the same climate-agriculture domain as CRIDA.

Emerging players

• Borlaug Institute for South Asia (BISA): Joint CIMMYT-ICAR institute focused on South Asia climate-resilient agriculture, conservation agriculture and smallholder productivity. Comparable research mandate with a more agile, partnership-driven operating model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/icarcrida
• Facebookfacebook.com/CRIDAICAR

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about ICAR-Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture