Dr. Patil is an agricultural engineer with a Ph.D. in soil physics. He completed his master's and doctoral studies on the vadose zone hydrology of rice fields at IIT Kharagpur. He joined ICRISAT in 2011, and his major research areas are soil physics and digital agriculture. Coordinating multiple project sites across Karnataka, Telangana, Odisha, and Maharashtra, his focus is on improving livelihoods through integrated watershed programs. Over time, he has refined his skills in data science in agriculture. Currently, Dr Patil is working with multiple national and international partners to develop digital platforms and smart applications for agriculture.