FAQ's & Updates

FAQs and Updates

Hello and Welcome to Big India Farms. Thanks for your interest in our farming projects.
This page has various details and updates about our farm land opportunity.
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Answers to Frequently Asked Questions:
Last Updated: 15 April 2016
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Q1. Where are the farms located?
Answer: Our company Big India Farms (BIF) is managing about 1100 acres of farm land today, with 1500 acres more under various stages of acquisition and registration.

All our lands are in MP state, due to favorable regulations for farm land ownership and organized farming. It also helps operational efficiency. Our farm lands are near Jabalpur about 200km from Nagpur, and Sohagpur about 200 km from Bhopal. The roads are good with continuous development taking place in the region.

Land Map – Following is the map of our farm lands in Umaria and Shapura, which is our largest base.
http://maps.google.co.in/maps?hl=en&ll=23.508747,80.939198&spn=0.047932,0.077162&t=h&z=10

We have multiple lands in this area, about 90 km from Jabalpur city.
Umaria is at the crossing of State Highway 11 and National Highway 78.
We have lands on both sides of National Highway 78. Shahpura is south of Umaria.
Jabalpur can be seen if you zoom out to 20km scale.

After our previous lands got sold out, we have recently arranged 220 acres at Rs 1.2 lakh per acre. These low prices are possible because we negotiate for hundreds of acres having established strong local presence in the areas we operate in, and we deal fairly with all people.

Q2. Can anyone buy farm land in MP state or do we need domicile certificate?
Answer: Any Indian national can buy farm land in MP state, which is one of the big reasons why investors and farmers from across India are accumulating lands in MP state, because the land prices for fertile lands are still low compared to other states like AP, Punjab, Maharashtra, Gujarat, etc. In fact, our farm owners come from across India because any Indian national can buy farm land in MP.

Q3. What are the farm land prices? How many acres are available?
Answer: We have about 150 acres of farm lands available for sale from Rs 1.2 lakh/acre to 10 lakh/acre in different places within MP state. Please check latest prices with us because they change regularly based on the latest land available for sale.

The farm lands at Shahpura/ Umaria near Jabalpur are currently available at Rs 1.3 lakh/acre, including registration costs. These are undervalued lands of good quality, and it is just a matter of time before their valuations reach parity with other similar lands in India, which will be made possible by constantly improving infrastructure of the region. Because of their low prices, their demand is high. If you are interested in these lands, we will add your demand to our buying queue. There is a lead time of 1-2 months due to existing order pipeline.

Q4. Are you into farming for the long term?
Answer: Yes, we are into farming for the long term, and we plan to continue our work for many decades to come. We are still at the tip of the iceberg when it comes to application of latest science and technology to farming in India. Farming yields in India have significant scope for improvement, and in the process, significant scope for rewarding us for our efforts.

Because we have a long term view of farming in India, we create full ecosystems and also invest in water and energy conservation, and education to nearby communities. We have taken lands in multiple villages and developed farms on them, and in the process increased the valuations of neighboring lands as well. One of the first things we do on any farm is arrange water storage bodies and rain water harvesting systems, which are investments done only by people looking to operate for the long term.

Q5. What farming projects are available currently for investment?
Answer: We are developing 2000 Acres of Fruit Plantation Ecosystems, because there is a significant opportunity involving fruits with rising incomes in India. Once we achieve this goal, we will be among the largest fruit producers of India, and you have the opportunity to be a part of this achievement.

We have recently launched our farming project offer for new year 2015.
Summary: Farm owner invests in farm land, BIF develops and operates the Fruit Plantation, and income is shared 80-20 between Farm owner and BIF. So the Farm owner has to invest only once in buying the farm land, and BIF will develop and operate the plantation for 15 years, and share the tax-free annual income with the Farm owner. This project can give 20% annualized return over 10-20 years. This is a limited time offer, and we will add about 50 farm owners under this offer during 2015.

Please see these documents for details:
(a) Project Brochure
http://bigindiafarms.com/BIF-fruit-plantation-2015.pdf

(b) Project Agreement
http://bigindiafarms.com/BIF-fruit-plantation-agreement-jan2015.pdf

Q7. What kind of financial returns are possible from farming projects with Big India Farms (BIF)?
Answer: There is a clear long-term opportunity with farming in India because of the demand-supply gap for food in India (especially fruits, vegetables, milk, eggs) due to rising per capita income. Depending on the type of project and capital invested in the agri infrastructure, it is possible to get 15-25% annualized returns over 10-20 year timeframe.

Please note that farming projects are not suitable for short term investors because there are many risks arising from nature, which may cause no returns in some years and bumper returns in some years – the farming income is inherently variable across the years because a farm is a living being, not a cold bank deposit. We will use our experience to create some stable income by having diversity in the farm. In parallel, the underlying farm land will continue to appreciate at about 15% per annum over next 10 years, which ensures a much better gain than bank deposits, or even urban lands in many cases.

Q8. How will Land Registration be done? How much time will it take?
Answer: The farm land will be registered in the buyer’s name, ie. the land title will be in the buyer’s name (your name). You will have to come once for the registration. It will just take one day. If you are abroad, your family member, who is based in India come for the registration. Please note that you don’t have to be an existing farmer to buy farm land in MP. We will advise you regarding travel for land registration so that you can plan in advance.

Q9. Can I just buy farm land from BIF and manage it myself without involvement of BIF?
Answer: Yes, it is possible but this would be a lower priority for us because it does not help in our vision of developing 2000 Acres of Fruit Plantations. If you want to buy farm land through BIF but want to manage it yourself, then minimum buying is 10 acres. We may raise it to 20 acres later this year. The land prices in this region currently range from Rs 1.2 lakh/acre  to Rs 3.5 lakh/acre depending on location.

Some of our farm owners have bought 10-20 acres and allocated half of it for Fruit Plantation managed by BIF, and kept the remaining half for doing their own custom projects. We are flexible for such options.

Q10. Can I visit and inspect the land before buying?

Answer: Yes, it is possible on case by case basis, but it needs to be planned 4-8 weeks in advance to suit our schedule on the ground. You have to send Rs 1 lakh as deposit for land blocking, 1 week prior to your visit, from which Rs 10K will be used per site visit because it takes time and resources to arrange site visits, and sometimes it risks our ongoing land acquisition in the area by increasing land costs. The deposit amount is small and refundable, and all serious buyers have no problem with it. Used deposit (Rs 10K per site visit) will be adjusted in land purchase. Unused deposit will be refunded. If you are looking to buy more than 10 acres, we may ask Rs 10K per acre as land blocking deposit, which is refundable in case you are not satisfied with the lands arranged by us.

Q11. How liquid would this investment be in 5-10 years?
Answer: Well-managed farm lands with clear titles are as liquid as urban property because the supply is scarce compared to demand. There will be demand from other farmers who want to increase their land holding or from new investors who want to establish a base. Fruit Plantations of 5-20 acres are fairly liquid assets after they start bearing fruit and annual income starts. Therefore, a farm owner must have the patience and willingness to hold his investment for at least 5-6 years.

Q12. If I want to sell my farm, will BIF help in selling/exiting the farm land/fruit plantation?
Answer: Yes. If you want to sell your farm land, BIF will share your offer with other farm investors in our network, and with land brokers in the region. As of now, all farm owners are looking to increase their land holdings with us. Please do not buy farm land if you want to sell it within 2-3 years. Please note that the fruit plantation has 15 year agreement because BIF will invest its energy and resources in developing the fruit plantation, as mentioned above. The fruit plantation can be sold after paying the nominal penalty fee of Rs 20K per acre.

Q13. What happens after the fruit plantation agreement terminates after 15 years?
Answer: After 15 years or early termination of the fruit plantation agreement, the farm owner is free to use his/her land for whatever purpose they choose. It is our belief that in 15 years, all these farm lands will benefit significantly from the progress in road/power/telecom infrastructure in the region. The demand for land would be much higher then, so the farm owner will have numerous options.

Q14. What is the appreciation potential for these farm lands?
Answer: All farm lands arranged by us are of good quality for farming with good potential for appreciation. Lands at Mandla/Umaria/Shahpura/Katni are best value for money, giving you maximum acres, which are ideal for fruit tree plantations. Therefore, experienced land investors with long timeframes are investing here.

Of the 350 acres arranged recently, about 220 acres are booked already because investors are seeing clear value at current prices, compared to farm land rates in other states like Punjab and Maharashtra, where comparable lands are 5-10x in price. In fact many large buyers of farm land are rich farmers from Punjab and Maharashtra who are seeing solid value at current prices. Due to the ongoing infrastructure development in power, telecom, roads, we believe that MP farm lands will not remain undervalued for long. And that presents a strong investment case today for anyone willing to see 5-10 years ahead.

Q15. How many acres are available for sale currently? How far are these lands from big cities Bhopal, Nagpur?

* Land bank 1: Sohagpur, MP
o Available: 20 acres
o Price: Rs 5 lakh/acre (internal land off-roads) to Rs 10 lakh/acre (main roads)
o Existing lands managed by BIF: 300+ acres
o Location: 220 km from Nagpur. Nearest airport Bhopal
o Minimum: 5 acres; Maximum: 21 acres per person

* Land bank 2: Pipariya, MP
o Available: 10 acres
o Price: From Rs 10 lakh/acre (near main roads)
o Existing lands managed by BIF: 50+ acres
o Location: 200 km from Nagpur. Nearest airport Bhopal
o Minimum: 10 acres; Maximum: 21 acres per person

* Land bank 3: Umaria-Shahpura, near Jabalpur, MP
o Available: 150 acres (internal land with road access)
o Price: From Rs 1.2 lakh/acre to Rs 3.5 lakh/acre
o Existing lands managed by BIF: 600+ acres
o Location: 360 km from Nagpur. Nearest airport Jabalpur
o Minimum: 5 acres; Maximum: 43 acres per person

* Land bank 4: Mandla, near Jabalpur, MP
o Available: 90 acres (internal land with road access)
o Price: From Rs 1.5 lakh/acre to Rs 3 lakh/acre
o Existing lands managed by BIF: 100+ acres
o Location: 360 km from Nagpur. Nearest airport Jabalpur
o Minimum: 5 acres; Maximum: 43 acres per person

* Land bank 5: Chhindwara (MP), near Nagpur
o Available: 110 acres (internal land with road access)
o Price: From Rs 1.65 lakh/acre to Rs 3.5 lakh/acre
o Existing lands managed by BIF: 100+ acres
o Location: 120 km from Nagpur. Nearest airport Nagpur
o Minimum: 5 acres; Maximum: 43 acres per person

In addition to the above, 200+ acres are under various stages of negotiation and acquisition.

Q16. I am ready to buy farm land / invest in Fruit Tree Plantation with Big India Farms (BIF). What are the next steps to get started? 
Answer: Please contact us by email or phone, and we will suggest suitable dates for farm land registration depending on how many acres you want to register. We will be happy to answer any other questions you may have. Our contact information is available here. Thanks for your time and interest.