{"id":2064,"date":"2026-07-10T17:12:22","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T21:12:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/utia.tennessee.edu\/spotlights\/?p=2064"},"modified":"2026-07-10T17:12:32","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T21:12:32","slug":"chetan-badgujar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/utia.tennessee.edu\/spotlights\/chetan-badgujar\/","title":{"rendered":"Chetan Badgujar"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Biosystems engineering and soil science<\/a> assistant professor advances agricultural innovation through robotics and automation<\/em><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n

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Where are you from, and how did your education and career lead you to the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture?<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’m from the state of Maharashtra, India. I’m an agricultural engineer by training, and all my degrees are in agricultural engineering. I completed my bachelor’s and master’s in India. My master’s was in the state of Punjab, popularly known as the \u201cwheat basket\u201d of India. For my PhD, I moved to Kansas, which happens to be the \u201cwheat basket\u201d of the United States. So yes, I basically followed the wheat! Right before defending my PhD, I came across a new opening in Knoxville with the UT Department of Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science, and it felt like a perfect fit for my education, skills, and expertise.<\/p>\n\n\n

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What inspired you to pursue a career in agricultural engineering?<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

My grandparents had \u2014 and still have \u2014 a small farm back in India. Growing up, I saw firsthand how difficult farming could be. There was a constant struggle for labor, rising costs, and it didn’t always feel safe. We had a pair of bulls on the farm, and they were essentially our tractor! I still remember how fun it was riding on the bullock cart. Farming was hard, but moments like those made it special.  I used to help them whenever I could. Labor was so short that they would ask us to pitch in on weekends. I remember hand-picking cotton, collecting harvested onions, and irrigating plots. Farming was hard then, and it still is today. Somewhere in those long days in the field, I decided I could do something to help, and that’s what led me to pursue a degree in agricultural engineering.<\/p>\n\n\n

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What is your research focus in the UT Department of Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science, and why is it important?<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n