Connect India and Logistics Arm of Faarms Merge to Form Bharat Supply

Connect India, a company funded by Aavishkaar Capital, has merged with the logistics arm of Bengaluru-based agri-platform Faarms. The merger will result in the formation of a new entity — Bharat Supply — which will become India’s largest logistics company focused on non-metro and rural markets. The combined entity has already built a 5,000-strong localised workforce, spanned across 230 districts and reaching over 200,000 villages — covering nearly one-third of all villages across the country.

The company offers a full-stack logistics solution, from last-mile delivery and seller pick-ups to sort centre operations, warehousing, and line haul services. It serves a wide array of clients, including MSMEs, e-commerce players, agri-enterprises, and large corporates.

Bharat Supply intends to be India’s largest tech-enabled distribution platform, focused exclusively on markets beyond metropolitan cities and towns. The company operates in 17 states and union territories, focusing on high-potential, underserved markets beyond metros, and offers 24-hour delivery across diverse regions—from Gujarat to Assam and Andaman to Jammu & Kashmir. Backed by robust teams in logistics, technology, customer service, operations, and on-ground execution, Bharat Supply has emerged as one of the fastest-scaling supply and distribution networks in the country.

“This strategic consolidation is in line with our vision to create scalable, impact-led businesses with a deep presence in Bharat,” said Vineet Rai, Founder and Chairman, Aavishkaar Group. “With Bharat Supply, we are delivering not just logistics infrastructure but economic inclusion.”

Bharat Supply is backed by Aavishkaar Capital, serial entrepreneur Cornelius (Conny) Boersch, founder of Conny & Co, Black Kite Capital, a Singapore-based family office, along with Apoorva Ranjan Sharma – co-founder of Venture Catalyst and 9Unicorns, Ramit Mittal of Bharti Family, 3one4 Capital as well as other Indian and international investors.

“India represents innovation-driven growth, especially in sectors like logistics where traditional infrastructure gaps can be effectively tackled via technology. Bharat Supply’s focus on building inclusive logistics for the next 500 million consumers mirrors what we’ve seen succeed in other emerging economies,” said Cornelius (Conny) Boersch.

“India’s rural and semi-urban markets hold immense untapped potential, and Bharat Supply is uniquely positioned to unlock that through deep logistics infrastructure and inclusive execution. This is not just a commercial opportunity, but a chance to build long-term value for millions,” Koh Boon Hwee, principal of Black Kite Capital, added.

The company is led by Taranbir Singh and Alok Duggal, co-founders of Faarms, who bring years of operational and agritech experience to scale the distribution business nationally. Aavishkaar Capital continues to be a significant stakeholder, offering strategic direction and sectoral expertise.

“At Bharat Supply, we’re building more than just a logistics network - we’re creating the backbone for commerce in the real Bharat. Our goal is to ensure that a farmer in a remote village or a small entrepreneur in a tier-III town gets the same delivery experience as someone in a metro,” said Taranbir Singh.

What differentiates Bharat Supply is its ability to execute 24-hour delivery across, even in the most inaccessible parts of the country, made possible by a proprietary logistics infrastructure, deep on-ground presence, and real-time technology integrations. It also places a strong focus on inclusive employment, engaging local gig workers and entrepreneurs across semi-urban and rural India. It has also created a customised solution for brands looking for line haul solutions for their dealers and distributors in semi-urban and rural areas.

With plans to scale operations to 300 districts by the end of 2025, Bharat Supply aims to become the go-to logistics partner for brands looking to expand across Bharat.

Voice Commerce - Niki partners with Connect India to Strengthen ties in 8000 small cities

Chat-bot and voice commerce startup, Niki, has partnered with Connect India, a leading logistics solutions provider to enable internet users from under-served pincodes of India to manage all their household expenses, online.

Backed by Mr. Ratan Tata, Unilazer Ventures and SAP.iO among other investors, Niki empowers Non-English speaking users with a unique conversational interface for doing online transactions in their own language. It handholds the upcoming internet users from Tier 2, Tier 3 India for paying monthly bills, prepaid recharges, booking bus tickets online and more, as it assists them through every step and provides assured fulfillment.

Niki is now leveraging Connect India’s large network to reach users in the remotest of areas to enable them with a natural, more convenient and faster way of transacting online through its vernacular platform. Removing language and complicated interface barriers that are the biggest roadblocks in adoption of digital payments all over Bharat, Niki lets the users place orders by simply talking in the language that they are comfortable with. It is also designed to overcome the trust deficit surrounding online payments in remote areas with its 100% fulfilment guarantee and state-of-the-art customer support.

Connect India’s network spanning over 8000 centers in 20 states provides Niki an unprecedented access to a large and loyal customer base while Niki’s simple interface, voice capabilities, and vernacular platform create a revolutionary experience for the Non-English population of the country. India’s first-ever vernacular platform for online transactions, Niki has seen a massive 300x growth in Hindi GMV, at an annualized run rate of 40 million USD, since it launched its Hindi language capabilities in October 2018. It is currently enabling 4.5 million users, 80% of whom are living in Tier 2, Tier 3 India.

Commenting on the partnership, Co-founder and CEO of Niki.ai, Sachin Jaiswal said, “While creating an impactful platform for the users of Bharat to transact online, one of the things we are constantly working towards is expanding Niki’s reach amongst the next billion users in the most efficient way. Connect India has one of the largest networks of on-ground agents and retail outlets which ties in perfectly with our goal of reaching users in the remotest areas and enabling them to manage their expenses online. Niki’s services complement Connect India’s vision and platform perfectly and this partnership is a win-win for all stakeholders involved. I foresee this partnership as being a major catalyst in realizing the Digital India dream."

Niki.ai, which touts itself as Bharat’s online agent, empowers the next billion internet users emerging from Tier 2,3,and 4 towns of India, to transact online by hand-holding and providing assurance through a conversational agent in ones' language.

Removing the barriers complicated interfaces, language and inhibitions regarding digital payments, Niki assures that users never get stuck online and goes the extra mile to ensure every task is successfully completed. It is a 24X7 support system that encourages people to save their precious time to do things that they love and leave all their payment-related worries to the friendly agent.

The vernacular conversational platform makes the entire user journey right from initiation to product discovery to transaction, extremely fast, convenient and as simple as talking to a friend where users can simply talk to Niki in order to pay their monthly bills, book bus or movie tickets, browse plans, do prepaid recharges, find local deals and much more, while its personalisation always helps one choose the option, best suited for them.

With 4.5mn+ users, Niki.ai is the only commerce bot in Asia to have attained substantial scale. In FY18, Niki.ai hit a GMV run rate of about $30 million and a revenue run rate of over $1 million. After adding Hindi language capabilities, it also witnessed 300x growth in Hindi GMV since October 2018, annualised at 40 million USD.