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Started from a village with Rs 7000 and built a 33,810 CR company. 1. Born into a farming Jain family in Wakod, Maharashtra, Bhavarlal Jain did not get more than one meal on the table. Still he earned a bachelor's degree in commerce and law. But like his father, he wanted to do something of his own. ✅ 2. With just Rs 7000, he started selling kerosene on a pushcart in the small town of Jalgaon in Maharashtra. But the entire town was driven by agriculture. So, he quickly pivoted to inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, and pumps. As he grew his business with trust, an opportunity came knocking. 👇 3. A 14-year-old failed banana powder plant was selling at Rs 30 lakhs. Bhavarlal (known as Bhau) knew he could transform the plant to produce papain from papaya latex. He got the factory and started travelling to New York in search of clients for Jain papain. But he noticed one more thing. 🤔 4. Lack of proper irrigation infrastructure was a severe bottleneck in agriculture. Most Indian farmers were dependent on uncertain flood irrigation. He formed a company to introduce cutting-edge drip and sprinkler irrigation systems. In 1986, Jain Irrigation Systems was born. 5. The idea was simple ⏩ Micro-irrigation technologies that could save up to 70% of water while boosting crop yields. Soon, the idea picked up in drought-prone areas of Maharashtra, and he expanded to plastic sheets, solar water heaters, and agricultural pipes with seven different factories. 🙌 6. But the big move came in 1994 when Bhau launched Asia's largest tissue culture facilities, producing over 90 million saplings annually for bananas and pomegranates. By March 1997, he managed 11 different projects of Rs 400 CR, equal to the company's size. But there was a catch. 👇 7. 250 CR came from debt, but no management managed that. The share price came from Rs 365 in February 1994 to just Rs 8 in October 2000. Bhau had expanded into several unrelated businesses and was struggling to breathe. In August 2002, Aqua International Partners invested Rs 183 crore for a 49.4% stake in the company. 💰 8. Bhau's stake decreased from 73% to 37%, but he never gave up. He exited non-core business, retired all debt, and bolstered working capital. He also launched Jain Fresh Farm Foods, which became India's largest mango pulp and dehydrated onion processor and exporter. By 2012, it had become a 3800 CR company. 📈 9. Bhau kept scaling globally through landmark acquisitions of companies like Chapin, Watermatics, and NaanDan.By 2017, it had clocked a revenue of 7000 CR at a profit of 176 CR. It had become India's largest micro-irrigation company and a unicorn. 🦄 ➡️Today, Jain Irrigation System works with over 6,000 dealers in 120 countries. At a valuation of 33,810 CR, it continues to be the India’s largest and world's second-largest micro-irrigation company. Though Padma Shri Bhavarlal Hiralal Jain passed away in 2016, his legacy still supports over 10 million farmers globally.