ASM Group Announces Exclusive Rural and Agribusiness Management Courses

ASM IBMR, India's only B-school to offer a curriculum integrated with Harvard Business School Online courses, today announced a two-year full-time Rural and Agribusiness Management course affiliated to Savitribai Phule University and approved by AICTE. The AICTE approved PGDM course and MBA course will be offered at ASM IIBR and ASM IBMR respectively. The course will also be offered in the executive education format at the ASM Executive Education Centre. The courses will have specializations in Finance, Operations, and Marketing along with practical training and guidance from leading names in agribusiness. Prakash Bakshi, ex-chairman of NABARD, has designed the curriculum with leading industry stalwarts likely as advisors. The course is probably the only one of its kind in Maharashtra in these areas and among the few across India.

Announcing the courses, Dr. Sandeep Pachpande, Chairman, ASM Group, said, "India's economy continues to be driven by agriculture and the new government has been speaking of structural initiatives to drive the growth of this critical sector that provides livelihoods to hundreds of millions of Indians. However, the number of courses focused on these areas and designed by industry experts is less. We are happy to fulfill that gap and I am sure the courses will meet the industry requirements."

Explaining the differentiators of the courses, Prakash Bakshi, ex-chairman of NABARD, said, "As I know the sector intimately, one of the big gaps I found has been the availability of industry-relevant courses aligned to what is actually needed on the ground. Most courses offered in this area offer theoretical knowledge but miss out grossly on practical inputs that will make students employable. We have extensively engaged industry stalwarts in not only designing the curriculum but we will also involve many of them in its delivery to ensure the students undertaking the course get a real picture and skills required for the needs on the ground. Happy to be back contributing to the agriculture space."