Lok Sabha Question No. 449 (STARRED), answered on 2026-03-24
Subject: Pilot Projects using AI in Agriculture
Ministry: AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE
Asked by: Shri B K Parthasarathi

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 449

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 24 TH  MARCH, 2026

## PILOT PROJECTS USING AI IN AGRICULTURE

*449. SHRI B K PARTHASARATHI:

Will the Minister of AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE क ृ िष एवं िकसान कʞाण मंũी

be pleased to state: (a) whether the Government has implemented pilot projects using Artificial Intelligence (AI)  in  the  agriculture  supply  chain,  including  applications  such  as  blockchain-based traceability, warehouse management, quality assessment, grading, forecasting, logistics optimisation and procurement monitoring; (b) if so, the details of such pilot projects, including implementing Ministries/agencies, locations, commodities covered, technological solutions deployed and key outcomes; (c) the details of collaborations made with private sector partners, agri-tech start-ups, research  institutions  and  technology  companies  for  developing,  testing  or  scaling  AIenabled agriculture supply chain technologies; (d) whether any assessment has been carried out on the impact of these AI solutions on efficiency, transparency, reduction of post-harvest losses, farmer incomes and market linkages and if so, the details thereof; and (e) the  details  of  the  measures  taken  by  the  Government  to  replicate  or  scale successful AI-based agriculture supply chain models across additional States,

- warehouses, mandis and FPOs?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE क ृ िष एवं िकसान कʞाण मंũी (SHRI SHIVRAJ SINGH CHOUHAN)

(a) to (e): A statement is laid on the table of the House.

## STATEMENT  MADE  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a)  to  (e)  OF  LOK  SABHA  STARRED QUESTION NO. 449 REGARDING PILOT PROJECTS USING AI IN AGRICULTURE RAISED BY SHRI B K PARTHASARATHI DUE FOR REPLY ON 24 TH  MARCH, 2026

(a) to (e): The Government is implementing pilot projects using Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the agriculture supply chain, including applications viz. blockchain-based traceability, warehouse management, quality assessment, grading, forecasting, logistics optimisation and procurement monitoring.

The Ministries are working in close collaboration with leading public institutions and technology  partners,  including  the  Indian  Council  of  Agricultural  Research  (ICAR),  the India  Meteorological  Department  (IMD),  the  Ministry  of  Electronics  and  Information Technology (MeitY),  the  Indian  Institute  of  Technology  (IITs),  and  private  entities  with domain expertise. These collaborations support the development, testing, and scaling of AI-enabled solutions across agricultural value chains, including advisory services, crop monitoring and weather forecasting. Key initiatives undertaken  by the Ministries in this regard are as follows:

## I. Department of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare:

-  Under  the  Digital  Agriculture  Mission,  the  government  is  creating  a database of basic farming-related information and using Artificial Intelligence  (AI)  to  develop  solutions  that  directly  benefit  farmers.  The mission  also  aims  to  ensure  that  services and  scheme  benefits  reach farmers quickly, easily, and with full transparency.  An important component of this mission is AgriStack,  a  farmer-centric Digital Public Infrastructure  (DPI).  It  is  being  developed  as  a  public  good,  similar  to Aadhaar, to enable faster and easier access to services and benefits for farmers. Under the AgriStack-DPI, every farmer is being provided with a digital identity called a Farmer ID. It functions like Aadhaar and is used as a 'farmer's identity.' This Farmer ID is linked to the farmer's personal details,  land  records,  crops  grown,  and  assets  such  as  livestock  and fisheries. As of 20 March 2026, more than 9.2 Crore Farmer IDs have been created across the country.
-  The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has initiated several AIrelated projects and has also proposed new ones. These are being used for farmer advisories, pest control, crop identification, insurance, delivery of  scheme benefits, and governance analytics. Some key AI initiatives are as follows:
- i. National Pest Surveillance System (NPSS) - In this system, pests are  identified  based  on  photos,  and  farmers  are  provided  with appropriate advice accordingly.
- ii. AI-based Crop Identification - During digital crop surveys, AI is used to automatically identify crops, which helps in obtaining more accurate crop-related data.
- iii. (AI-based  Monsoon  and  Weather  Advisory  -  This  AI  model  is based on more than 100 years of data from the India Meteorological Department (IMD). It provides weather insights that help farmers make  better decisions regarding sowing and irrigation.
- iv. Bharat Vistar (Virtually Integrated System to Access Agricultural Resources) - This is an advanced and integrated AI system that brings  together  scattered  agricultural  information  onto  a  single platform.  It  integrates  various  schemes,  institutions,  and  data sources, making it easier for farmers to access information. It is a conversational  AI  system  through  which  farmers  can  interact directly  to  get  information  on  government  schemes,  services, scientific farming practices, weather, pests, Soil Health Cards, and market prices (mandi rates). This helps reduce the information gap among farmers  and  provides  accurate  farming  advice  at  scale. The service is  also  available  on  basic  mobile  phones.  The  first phase (Phase 1) of Bharat Vistar was launched on 17 February 2026.

## II. Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR) :

-  ICAR  is  focused  on  the  development  of  AI-based  technologies  in Research & Development (R&D) programmes for achieving sustainable, climate  smart,  efficient  solutions  for  precision  farming,  enhanced  crop production, sustainable agriculture and improved live-stock management. During 2021-25, 115 AI-based research projects (List of the projects is given at Annexure-I) were operated in the following areas:
- o Mechanization of production and post-production operation of agricultural crops.
- o Agricultural/horticultural/plantation crops disease management.
- o Drone application in agriculture.
- o Jute fibre grading and jute retting system
- o Cotton ginning and Cotton yarn quality
- o Marine fishery species identification
-  A  technology  namely  'AI  based  Grain  Analyzer  Software'  has  been validated in the field  by the private sector industry  partner,  M/s. Osaw India Pvt. Ltd (Indosaw), Ambala. The SPAD meter 2.0 which measures leaf chlorophyll concentration non-destructively has been licensed to the following three firms for multiplication and marketing:
- o M/s. GT Bio Science Pvt Ltd, Yavatmal, Maharashtra
- o M/s. SKR AGROTECH, Wardha, Maharashtra
- o M/s. WS Telematics Pvt. Ltd., Okhla Industrial Area, New Delhi
-  In the aquaculture domain, fisheries research institutes have developed pilot-level  AI/data-driven  technology  outputs  under  NEPPA-supported initiatives. The details are as follows:
- o SMART  Fish  Feeder: An  intelligent  fish  feeding  system  for precision feed dispensing in aquaculture based on programmed schedules and culture requirements, aimed at improving feed-use efficiency and reducing feed wastage.
- o CIFA  AquaNIRNAY: A  geospatial  decision-support  tool  using machine learning algorithms, remote sensing and GIS for identification of water bodies suitable for aquaculture development, to support scientific planning and prioritization.
- o LaksyaShrimp: End-to-end block chain-based digital traceability system  and  method  using  IoT  for  end-to-end  supply  chain management in shrimp including broodstock, hatchery, nursery, grow-out, inputs, harvesting, aggregations, transportation, marketing, processing, exporting and retailing.

At present, the technologies developed are in pilot-scale evaluation.

## III. Department of Food & Public Distribution (DFPD)

-  DFPD  is  implementing  the  Artificial  Intelligence  (AI)    based  SMART Warehouse project in all Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC) food grain  warehouses  and  150  Food  Corporation  of  India  (FCI)  owned warehouses. Components of AI enabled smart warehousing are:
- o AI enabled Bag counting system
- o AI enabled Face recognition system
- o AI enabled fire and smoke detection system
- o AI enabled rodent detection system
- o Smart locks
- o Gate automation
- o IOT sensors (CO2 and Phosphine Gas sensors)
-  Besides, Bhandaran 360 (ERP system of CWC) has been implemented for  warehouse  management and  also  to  support  logistics  optimization and  demand  forecasting.  In  addition,  Transport  Management  System (TMS) has been deployed to enable live tracking and reduce dwell time.

## IV. Department of Science & Technology (DST), Government of India

-  The Department of Science and Technology is running two Technology Innovation Hubs (TIHs): one at IIT Bombay through the TIH Foundation, and another at IIT Ropar called AWaDH. These institutions are working on  IoT/IoE  (Internet  of  Thing/Internet  of  Everything)  and  agricultural technologies,  and  are  conducting  pilot  projects  for  the  use  of  AI  in agricultural supply chains.
-  At IIT Bombay, the TIH Foundation is working in collaboration with the ICAR-Directorate of Onion and Garlic Research (ICAR-DOGR). The key areas of work include:
- o An image processing-based grading system for identifying different varieties of onions.
- o A  smart  sensor-based  system  for  price  management,  which  can detect  onion  rotting  in  advance  using  BLE  mesh  technology.  This technology  has  been  tested  in  farmers'  warehouses  in  the  Nashik region and has been shared with Jain Irrigation Systems Limited.
- o Additionally, under the NM-ICPS program, a project called 'BharatGen'  is  being  developed  to  create  multimodal  and  multilingual  AI solutions. It also includes the 'Krishi Sathi' platform, which provides farmers with personalized and real-time advisory services.
-  At IIT Ropar (AWaDH), several AI-based pilot projects in the agricultural supply chain are being carried out through its startups. These include:
- o Quality assessment of maize and connecting farmers to markets in Punjab - by Roots Goods
- o Satellite  and  IoT-based  crop  monitoring  and  advisory  services  in Uttarakhand - by Bhoomi Cam
- o IoT-based food supply chain analytics in Maharashtra - by Qzense Labs
- o Climate-based decision-making and resource optimization in Haryana - by Navariti Innovation
- o A  biodiversity  monitoring  system  implemented  in  more  than  38 locations, including India - in collaboration with Syngenta
- o Health monitoring of cows in Tarn Taran (Punjab) - by Moo Farm
-  All these projects are being carried out with the support of TIH IIT Ropar (AWaDH),  in  collaboration with various partners through different startups. They cover sectors such as maize, cereals, and livestock.
-  TIH  AWaDH  has  established  strong  collaboration  among  industry, academia, and government, which is helping in the development, testing, and large-scale deployment of AI-based agricultural technologies.

These  AI-driven  innovation  aims  to  facilitate  to  improved  efficiency,  enhanced transparency, better crop monitoring, a reduction in crop losses, and strengthened farmer decision-making.  They  also  facilitate  improved  market  linkages  and  supply  chain management through better access to information and logistics support.

## List  of  Research  Projects  incorporating  Artificial  Intelligence  (AI)  technologies operated during FY 2021-25:

|   Sl. No. | Project Name                                                                                             |
|-----------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|         1 | Development of robotic harvester for poly-house cultivated tomatoes                                      |
|         2 | IoT-Based Monitoring and Early Infection Detection in Dairy Cattle using Infrared Thermography (IRT)     |
|         3 | Image based Variable-rate Nitrogen Applicator                                                            |
|         4 | Yield prediction using multi-temporal data from UAV-based multispectral imagery                          |
|         5 | Plant Disease Detection Using UAV Multispectral Imagery                                                  |
|         6 | Development of Plant Nitrogen Monitoring and Management System for Polyhouse                             |
|         7 | Development of computer vision based human posture analyse system for ergonomic assessment               |
|         8 | Development and evaluation of robotic harvester for grape bunches                                        |
|         9 | Development of AI/ IoT Based intelligent Irrigation System for Field Crops                               |
|        10 | Machine learning based Decision Support System (DSS) for micro-irrigation management                     |
|        11 | Drone operated line seeder                                                                               |
|        12 | Drone Based Variable rate Fertilizer Applicator                                                          |
|        13 | Development of robotic cotton picker                                                                     |
|        14 | Development of remotely controlled tree climber                                                          |
|        15 | Development of robotic autonomous cart                                                                   |
|        16 | Development of computer vision based robotic manipulator for transplanting vegetable nursery             |
|        17 | Development and Evaluation of UAV-based Variable Rate Applicator for Fertilizer Application              |
|        18 | A machine learning approach for muscle fatigue detection during agricultural operations using smartphone |
|        19 | Design, development, and safety evaluation of an AI-based emergency braking system for a tractor         |
|        20 | Image based hand held device for diseases identification in soybean                                      |
|        21 | AI-enabled hand held device for detection of abiotic stress in wheat and maize crop                      |
|        22 | Development of automatic spraying system for polyhouse                                                   |

|   23. | Deep learning based computer vision techniques for yield estimation of mandarin oranges                                                                            |
|-------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|    24 | Development of a controller based feed dispensing system for poultry                                                                                               |
|    25 | Development of lab based robotic transplanter for plug-type vegetable seedlings                                                                                    |
|    26 | Development remote operated weeder for wide spaced field crops                                                                                                     |
|    27 | Development of robotic transplanter for plug-type vegetable seedlings                                                                                              |
|    28 | Development of unmanned rice transplanter                                                                                                                          |
|    29 | Development of self-propelled track type vehicle for small farms                                                                                                   |
|    30 | Development and Evaluation of IoT based Smart Irrigation System for Field Crops in Vertisols.                                                                      |
|    31 | Development of digital weighing type lysimeter for irrigation scheduling of different crops                                                                        |
|    32 | Design and development of floating axial flow pump for small farms                                                                                                 |
|    33 | Development of robot for pollinator and spraying operation in the greenhouse to minimise drudgery                                                                  |
|    34 | Development of robot for pollinator and spraying operation in the greenhouse to minimise drudgery                                                                  |
|    35 | Development of robot for pollinator and spraying operation in the greenhouse to minimise drudgery                                                                  |
|    36 | Hyperspectral reflectance and multi-nutrient extractant based rapid assessment of soil properties for sustainable soil health in India                             |
|    37 | Design and development of vision based inter and intra-row weeder suitable to small land holdings                                                                  |
|    38 | A cross platform application for Identification and advisory for managing diseases and insects in oilseed crops through Image Analysis and Artificial Intelligence |
|    39 | Water demand estimation in a canal command area using Machine Learning                                                                                             |
|    40 | Managing Irrigation Systems for Optimizing Water Productivity and Improving Resilience Using Advance Tools                                                         |
|    41 | Natural grassland ecosystem monitoring system for peninsular and Trans Himalayan India to sustain pastoral communities                                             |
|    42 | Digital monitoring and mapping soil hydraulic properties using visible to thermal hyperspectral remote sensing of Indian west coastal region                       |

|   43. | Empowering Farmers with Machine Learning-Based Price Forecasts for Plantation Crops of West Coast of India                                                                                                    |
|-------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|    44 | Deep Learning based AI models for Stress Detection from Plant digital Imageries                                                                                                                               |
|    45 | Design and development of vision based inter and intra-row weeder suitable to small land holdings                                                                                                             |
|    46 | Assessment of important soil properties of India using Infrared Spectroscopy                                                                                                                                  |
|    47 | Development of hyperspectral-based model for in-situ estimation of soil carbon and nitrogen                                                                                                                   |
|    48 | Network programme on Precision Agriculture (NePPA)                                                                                                                                                            |
|    49 | Expanding breeding window of IMC (Labeo catla) for year-round seed availability                                                                                                                               |
|    50 | IoT based precision enclosure culture and fisheries management in inland open waters                                                                                                                          |
|    51 | A pilot project for developing drone technology for live fish transport and PAN India level demonstration                                                                                                     |
|    52 | Application of drone technology for Agriculture coordinated by ICAR-ATARI, Kolkata                                                                                                                            |
|    53 | Development of Portable Fish Freshness Assessment Sensor                                                                                                                                                      |
|    54 | Automated System for Marine Fishery Resources Landing Data collection via computer vision and AI-driven deep learning algorithms for species identification and quantification from Visual images             |
|    55 | ICAR-Network program on Precision Agriculture (NePPA) (Precision aquaculture/small scale culture fishery for fish production)                                                                                 |
|    56 | Swachhta Action Plan and Commercial Utilization of Fish Waste from Urban Fish Markets                                                                                                                         |
|    57 | Artificial intelligence powered diagnostic kit for real-time monitoring of nematode pests of sugarcane                                                                                                        |
|    58 | Screening of sugarcane progenies &germplasm for disease resistance, disease survey & surveillance and impact of climate changes on sugarcane diseases and disease management Disease surveillance             |
|    59 | Artificial Intelligence enabled Biotic & Abiotic Stress Detection and Advisory Mobile Application for Crops                                                                                                   |
|    60 | Development of Artificial Intelligence based Model and Tool for Genomic Studies                                                                                                                               |
|    61 | Computational approaches for identification, structural and functional analysis of important genes for nutritional quality improvement and analysis of regulatory elements governing various traits in crops. |
|    62 | M 15.10 Artificial intelligence based detection of disease and insect pests in sugarcane                                                                                                                      |

|   63. | Development of a smartphone-based digital support system for the efficient monitoring of multiple diseases of sugarcane in India                                                      |
|-------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|    64 | AE 1.27 Testing, evaluation and demonstration of different applications of spraying drone in sugarcane                                                                                |
|    65 | Studies on phylogenetic analysis and host pathogen interaction in leaf blight complex of wheat                                                                                        |
|    66 | SoyAI: Transforming Soybean Cultivation Through Advanced AI Modelling                                                                                                                 |
|    67 | Drone application in agriculture                                                                                                                                                      |
|    68 | Development of Interactive Mobile Apps for Non-chemical Methods in insect pest management (In-House)                                                                                  |
|    69 | Geo mapping of predominant insect pests and their natural enemies of India and development of IoT based crop advisory system for tomato (In-House)                                    |
|    70 | RAISE-Rice AI Stress Evaluator                                                                                                                                                        |
|    71 | Smart precision models and Mobile Apps for real time advisories on Rice crop Management                                                                                               |
|    72 | Insect-Pest and Disease Forecasting and Decision Support Systems in rice                                                                                                              |
|    73 | Active Optical Sensors based yield Prediction in Cotton and Crop Canopy Management using Unmanned Aerial System                                                                       |
|    74 | Deployment of AI Pheromone Trap for Real-time Monitoring of Cotton Pink bollworm in Punjab                                                                                            |
|    75 | National Pest Surveillance System (NPSS)                                                                                                                                              |
|    76 | AI-based Mobile App for Identification of Key Pests of Brinjal and Okra and their Management                                                                                          |
|    77 | Development of Mobile App for AI based Identification, Surveillance and Management of Key Pests of Maize                                                                              |
|    78 | Natural Grassland Ecosystem Monitoring System for Peninsular and Trans Himalayan India to Sustain Pastoral Communities                                                                |
|    79 | Grassland Restoration and Rejuvenation for enhancing Grazing resources using Remote Sensing and Drone Technologies                                                                    |
|    80 | Establishment of information resource and prediction servers for the genes related to yield traits, biotic stress, and abiotic stress in agriculturally important crops.              |
|    81 | Genomic exploration of lesser-known chicken population of Jharkhand                                                                                                                   |
|    82 | Agriculture Mechanization for implementation of its Component no. 1 under Agri Drone Project (ADP) Drone Technology Demonstration during 2022-23 under Central Sector Scheme of DA&FW |
|    83 | Drone Robotics and machine learning                                                                                                                                                   |

|   84. | Agri Drone Project (ADP) Drone Technology Demonstration during 2022-23                                                                                                                                                                                                                        |
|-------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|    85 | Design and development of sensor based early pest detection technology                                                                                                                                                                                                                        |
|    86 | Development of solar-powered variable swath herbicide applicator robot for high-value vegetable crop                                                                                                                                                                                          |
|    87 | Development of sensor based low volume target sprayer for disease in vegetable crops                                                                                                                                                                                                          |
|    88 | Network Program on Precision Agriculture (NEPPA)                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              |
|    89 | Development of sensor based precision seeding retrofit module for cultivators                                                                                                                                                                                                                 |
|    90 | Development and evaluation of automated sensors for a highly-efficient nutrition management system in indoor vertical farming                                                                                                                                                                 |
|    91 | Development of robotic precision planter                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      |
|    92 | Simulation modelling system for crop yield prediction in India (FASAL 2.0)                                                                                                                                                                                                                    |
|    93 | Drone Robotics and machine learning                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           |
|    94 | Network Project on Computational Biology and Agricultural Bioinformatics Scheme                                                                                                                                                                                                               |
|    95 | Application of machine learning for Hyperspectral imaging and remote sensing aimed at early detection of fungal foliar disease and bacterial wilt disease in potato crop                                                                                                                      |
|    96 | Yield forecasting for Maize, wheat and mustard in Delhi region under Forecasting Agriculture output using space, Agro-meteorology and land based observations (FASAL)                                                                                                                         |
|    97 | Investment in ICAR leadership for Agricultural Higher Education (Activity- Capture of images using AI Mobile App for development and management of online disease & pest image database on various crops/Livestock and demonstration of developed mobile app to farmers and allied community) |
|    98 | Farmer-driven localized artificial intelligence system for early detection of wheat rust disease and nutrient deficiency                                                                                                                                                                      |
|    99 | Development of IoT based custom hiring monitoring meter of agricultural machines                                                                                                                                                                                                              |
|   100 | Artificial Intelligence based studies on estrus and parturient behaviour of Mithun                                                                                                                                                                                                            |
|   101 | Machine Learning Approaches for Foot and Mouth Disease Virus Serotype and Lineage Prediction using the Virus Next Generation Sequencing Data                                                                                                                                                  |
|   102 | IoT Solution for Smart Poultry Farm Practice (Lead Centre is CDAC-Kolkata)                                                                                                                                                                                                                    |
|   103 | ICAR-Network Programme on Precision Agriculture-Developing precision livestock farming systems using sensors and artificial intelligence (ICAR- NePPA)                                                                                                                                        |
|   104 | Development of an automated blastocyst grading system using artificial intelligence in cattle and buffalo                                                                                                                                                                                     |

|   105. | Facial Image-Based Biometric Recognition for Unique Animal Identification using Machine Learning (Artificial Intelligence)                                                                      |
|--------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|    106 | Milk production prediction in India under changing climate scenarios with machine learning algorithms                                                                                           |
|    107 | A Machine Learning Approach to Assess Gait Kinematics for Prediction of Lameness in Crossbred Cattle                                                                                            |
|    108 | Development of statistical and computational techniques for improving research methodology                                                                                                      |
|    109 | Development of standard operating procedures (SoPs) for drone based spraying operations in the management of pest and diseases in coconut and arecanut                                          |
|    110 | Development of an AI based Mobile Application for detection and advisory of diseases in Coconut                                                                                                 |
|    111 | Use of simulation models for the production system analysis of palms and cocoa                                                                                                                  |
|    112 | Utilization of hyperspectral imagining technique for plantation crops                                                                                                                           |
|    113 | Pest and disease surveillance on coconut using an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) ( A collaborative project with M/s General Aeronautics Pvt Ltd, Bangalore, funded by Coconut Development Board) |
|    114 | Development of an IoT-based embedded system for indicating the retting of jute plants                                                                                                           |
|    115 | Development of an Automated Jute Grading System                                                                                                                                                 |

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