Lok Sabha Question No. 4966 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-04-01
Subject: Use of IT in Agriculture Sector
Ministry: AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE
Asked by: Shri Sanjay Haribhau Jadhav

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE

## DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4966

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 01 ST  APRIL, 2025

## USE OF IT IN AGRICULTURE SECTOR

## 4966. SHRI SANJAY HARIBHAU JADHAV:

Will the Minister of AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE ( कृ ͪष एवं ͩकसान कãयाण मंğी ) be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of steps taken by the Government for the development of Information Technology (IT) and to improve the level of implementation in the field of agriculture in the country;
- (b) whether any measures have been taken by the Government to encourage the use of IT equipment's and solutions to boost the production through farm pattern, if so, the details thereof and the outcome thereof;
- (c) whether the Government has evaluated the impact of information technology on Agriculture, if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether  the  Government  proposes  to  move  forward  with  the  Integration  of Information technology in the agriculture sector;
- (e) if so, the details thereof; and
- (f) the  manner  in  which  the  Government  encourage  the  farmers  particularly  small farmers to effectively use above technologies in their agriculture activities?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ ͪष एवं ͩकसान कãयाण राÏय मंğी (SHRI RAMNATH THAKUR)

(a) to (f): Government of India supports and facilitates the State Governments for infusing modern  and  smart  farming  technologies  in  the  agriculture  sector.  The  use  of  modern machines, including kisan drones, is promoted under Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM). Under National e-Governance Plan in Agriculture (NeGPA), funding is given to State Governments for Digital Agriculture Projects using emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence, and Machine Learning (AI/ML), Internet of Things (IOT), Blockchain etc.  A  component  called  'Innovation  and  Agri-Entrepreneurship  Development'  has  been launched  under  Rashtriya  Krishi  Vikas  Yojana  (RKVY-RAFTAAR)  in  2018-19  with  the objective of promoting innovation and Agri-Entrepreneurship by providing financial support and  nurturing  the  digital  incubation  ecosystem.  Under  this  programme,  Start-ups  are encouraged to use innovative technologies to resolve challenges faced in the agriculture and allied sectors. The funds are released to the States based on their proposals.

O.I.H

Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare (DA&FW) is implementing Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) in the country from 2015-16. PDMC focuses on enhancing water-use efficiency at farm-level through Micro Irrigation, namely, Drip and Sprinkler Irrigation Systems. The PDMC also supports micro-level water storage, water conservation/management  activities  as  Other  Interventions  (OI)  to  supplement  source creation  for  Micro  Irrigation.  During  the  years  2015-16  to  2021-22,  the  PDMC  was implemented as a component of Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY). From the year 2022-23 onwards, the PDMC is being implemented under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana  (RKVY).  Micro-irrigation  helps  in  water-saving  as  well  as  reduced  fertilizer  usage through fertigation, labour expenses, other input costs and overall income enhancement of farmers.  The  Government  provides  financial  assistance  @  55%  for  small  and  marginal farmers and @ 45% for other farmers for installation of Drip and Sprinkler systems under the PDMC. The Assistance for installation of Micro-irrigation systems is limited to 5 hectares for a beneficiary.

The Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR) has been supporting Agri-based startups under the project called National Agriculture Innovation Fund (NAIF) initiated in the year 2016-2017. It has two components viz. (I) Innovation Fund; (II) Incubation Fund and National Coordinating Unit (NCU):

- I.    Component I: 10 (Ten) Zonal Technology Management Units and 89 Institute Technology Management  Units  (ITMUs)  established  in  99  ICAR  institutes  provide  a  single-window mechanism to manage innovations, showcase intellectual assets, and pursue matters related to intellectual property (IP) management and transfer/commercialization of technologies in these institutes.
- II.     Component  II:  Agri-business  Incubator  Centres  (ABICs)  are  set  up  to  speed  up  the delivery of the new technologies to stake holders. The ABICs are the nodal points to provide the desired link for Agriculture Research & Development (R&D) Institutions for incubation/ commercialization of the validated technologies. So far,50 Agri-Business Incubation Centers have been established and are operational in the ICAR network under the NAIF scheme.

Further, the Government has built Digital Public Infrastructure for Agriculture as an open source, open standard at interoperable public goods as per budget announcements for the year 2023-24. These DPI intend to provide access to technology and information to the farmers across the country to address the farmer-centric solutions, through various digital initiatives.

A  Central  Sector  Scheme  for  blended  Capital  Support  to  finance  startups  for agriculture  and  rural  enterprise  relevant  for  the  Farm  Produce  Value  Chain  has  been approved.  Accordingly,  administrative  approval  for  Agri  SURE  has  been  conveyed  to NABARD to operationalize the fund.

Looking into the unique advantages of Drone technologies in agriculture, the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare has released the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for  use  of  drones  in  pesticide  and  nutrient  application  in  public  domain  during  December 2021, which provide concise instructions for effective and safe operation of drones. In order to  make  this  technology  affordable  to  the  farmers  and  other  stakeholders  of  this  sector, financial assistance @ 100% for purchase of agricultural drones and its attachments (actual cost of expenditure and its attachments or Rs. 10.00 lakhs, whichever is lower) together with the contingent expenditure is extended under the Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM) to the Farm Machinery Training & Testing Institutes of Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) and State Agricultural Universities (SAUs) and @ 75% to FPO's for its demonstration on the farmer's fields. In order to provide agricultural services through drone application, financial assistance @  40% of  the  basic cost  of drone  and its attachments or Rs. 4 lakhs, whichever is less; also provided for drone purchase by existing and new Custom Hiring Centers (CHCs) and also a general category of farmers and @ 50% of the basic cost of drone and its attachments or Rs. 5 lakhs for SC/ST/women/small and marginal farmers and the agriculture graduates.

The Government has approved 'Namo Drone Didi' as a Central Sector Scheme for providing drones to the Women Self Help Groups (SHGs) with an outlay of Rs. 1261 Crores for  the  period from 2023-24 to 2025-26. The scheme aims to provide drones to 15000 selected Women SHGs for providing rental services to farmers for agricultural purpose (application of fertilizers and pesticides).

Further, the Government has employed Artificial Intelligence (AI) methods and IoTenabled systems to improve crop productivity, sustainability and farmer livelihoods and to address various challenges  in the agricultural sector to aid farmers etc. Some initiatives including Kisan e-Mitra are given below:

- I.  'Kisan e-Mitra', an AI-powered chatbot, has been developed to assist farmers with responses  to  queries  about  the  PM  Kisan  Samman  Nidhi  scheme.  This  solution supports  multiple  languages  and  is  evolving  to  assist  with  other  government
2. programs. At present, it handles over 20,000 farmer queries daily and so far, more than 92 lakh queries have been answered.
- II.  The National Pest Surveillance System, for tackling the loss of produce due to climate change, utilizes AI and Machine Learning to detect pest infestation in crop issues, enabling  timely  intervention  for  healthier  crops.  This  tool,  currently  used  by  over 10,000 extension workers, allows farmers to capture images of pests to help them mitigate  pest  attacks  and  reduce  crop  losses.  At  present,  it  currently  supports  61 crops and over 400 pests with approx. 1 lakh uploaded images.
- III.  AI-based  analytics  using  field  photographs  for  crop  health  assessment  and  crophealth monitoring using Satellite imagery, weather & soil moisture datasets for rice and wheat crops.
5. *****