MB Patil Meets UPL CEO to Expand Agri-Tech Presence

• Karnataka Minister MB Patil met UPL CEO Jai Shroff at WEF to discuss expanding operations in the state
• They explored a district-based model to boost farm productivity
• Patil’s delegation plans 45+ meetings with global leaders to attract investment

During a recent meeting, Karnataka Minister MB Patil revealed that he had a discussion with UPL Chairman and Group CEO Jai Shroff at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos about UPL's agricultural expansion in the state.

By the way of post shared on X, Patil pointed out that the talk mostly dealt with UPL’s augmentation of operations in Karnataka, especially in light of the company’s achievements in North Karnataka, where its corn seed performance has been so good that it has resulted in an annual business of around Rs 300 crore.

“Met with Mr. Jai Shroff, Chairman and Group CEO of UPL, to discuss expanding their agricultural footprint in Karnataka. Following strong corn seed performance and Rs300 Cr annual business in North Karnataka, UPL is looking to scale up with new irrigation technologies and a specialized ethanol plant for exports”, he added.

The dialogue further offered the idea of a district-specific partnership model aimed at improving farm productivity all over Karnataka.

“We explored a district-focused collaboration to boost farm productivity and discussed routing potash imports through Mangalore Port to leverage our coastal infrastructure. Their new technology to reduce urea usage by 30% aligns perfectly with our sustainability goals. I have assured the delegation of our full facilitation as they deepen their commitment to our farmers”, he mentioned.

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Prior to the WEF, Minister Patil has shown his interest in promoting Karnataka's global industrial hub and being the one to sell the state to the world as an investment-friendly place, thus facilitating the state development.

The Minister also said that he together with the delegation would do more than 45 high-level meetings with the world leaders during the summit.

"Headed to #WEF26 Davos (Jan 19-23) to advance Karnataka's global industry and investment agenda. With an execution-first approach, our delegation will hold 45+ high-level meetings with global leaders, including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Lenovo, and Coca-Cola, focused on converting investment intent into on-ground projects and quality jobs”, the post read.

The World Economic Forum's (WEF's) 56th Annual Meeting in Davos, which started on January 19, 2026, is hosting almost 3,000 leaders from over 130 nations.

The gathering runs until January 23 and takes place under the shadows of geopolitical conflicts, economic instability, and fast-paced technology changes. The theme of the summit, "A Spirit of Dialogue”, is meant to create a cooperative and trusting atmosphere among government, business, and civil society leaders.