The North Eastern Region Agri-Commodity E-Connect (NE-RACE) portal getting a good response from sellers, farmers, Farmer Producer Companies (FPC), Self Help Groups, and buyers is good news. The region has a strategic advantage with traditional farming practices being organic and free from chemical fertiliser and pesticides. While the digital platform facilitates direct buyer-seller linkages to help growers and sellers in the region to unlock the market potential of agricultural and horticultural commodities, the primary challenge remains in scaling up the production to cater to growing demand. The new-age tech-savvy buyers not just want fast and smart deliveries of their orders but also want guaranteed product availability to return to the same sellers. Nevertheless, the onboarding of 6807 sellers/farmers/FPCs and 735 buyers on the portal and the listing of 1797 agri-commodities on the platform to date signal an encouraging trend that must be acknowledged. The total value of sales facilitated through the portal stands at a modest Rs 9 crore, but the amount can exponentially increase if the benefits of digital market linkage are spread and more stakeholders are integrated. Apart from the buyer-seller linkage, NR-RACE provides logistics-related guidance through a multilingual helpdesk, field-level support, and state coordinators, who assist integration of stakeholders, resolve operational issues, and facilitate communication. Significant improvement in digital and surface connectivity in the region has brought huge opportunities for farmers and local traders in the region to dream bigger and tap into the wider domestic market outside their state that was once unimaginable for them. The spread of mobile connectivity in the region and covering most border villages is reflective of the expansion of the digital network in the region. The government told the Lok Sabha that smartphones are becoming available and accessible to everyone, and major telecom companies of India have reached almost every corner of the country with their services. However, farmers without mobile phones can also benefit from digital services by registering themselves on Agri Stack and avail themselves of services and benefits by utilising existing support facilities like Farmers Producer Organisations (FPOs), Krishi Sakhis and Common Service Centres (CSCs). Besides, the government is also making digital applications available in local languages through the integration of Bhashini Platforms, it adds. The states in the region leveraging these additional digital facilities for the benefit of the farmers can go a long way in integrating more farmers and sellers with the NE-RACE platform. A range of agricultural commodities grown in the region already getting the Geographical Indication tag is another advantage for the region to expand the market reach through the digital platform. The central government identifying at least 150 products, including agricultural products, from the region for securing a GI tag over the next two years is expected to increase the demand. Apart from producing on scale to cater to the rising demand, quality packaging and clear labelling are crucial for boosting buyers’ confidence and trust. Organic certification remains a challenge with a lack of required infrastructure, laboratories and certification agencies. Buying and selling on digital platforms, being a virtual activity, the display of details of organic certification, and the approval of food safety standards on the platform play an important role in influencing buyers’ decisions, but a lot needs to be done in this regard, including building awareness among growers and sellers. The farmers in the region are also deriving benefits from the Artificial Intelligence-powered chatbot – Kisan e-Mitra, which is developed to assist farmers with responses to their queries on the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme, PM Fasal Bhima Yojna and Kisan Credit Card need to be prioritised by the state agriculture departments. This digital solution, which currently supports 11 languages and handles 8,000 farmer queries daily, is voice-enabled, so its importance in a region like the northeast, with over two hundred different language speakers, is naturally very high. The technological intervention can be sustainable only when agricultural production is sustainable. As most areas of the region depend on rainfed cultivation for agricultural production, increasing coverage of assured irrigation is vital for scaling up production. Being an ecologically fragile region, the farmers adopting climate-resilient farming practices and technology is vital for sustainable production. Erratic rainfall, which often leads to the occurrence of large excess rainfall within a small farming window and deficient rainfall when farmers need rain most for the required water for seed sowing or healthy plant growth, has become increasingly common due to climate change-induced impact and cannot be overlooked as isolated weather events. Assured irrigation at an affordable cost, therefore, needs to be prioritised even as efforts are made to push for advanced technological solutions like digital market linkage. Expeditious completion of road and railway projects for all-weather connectivity is crucial for seamless supplies. At the same time, the region needs a holistic, integrated approach for overall improvement in agricultural production. Building awareness among farmers on all these aspects is critical to deriving optimal benefits from digital solutions.