Digitization in Farm Productivity

We are moving through a digital age where almost every concept is based on digital technology. All the prominent sectors of the economy are adopting new digital tools and techniques to carry out their activities more efficiently and accurately. Digital technology has made processes faster with quick access and sharing of information and generating effective outcomes. India is also targeting establishing a digitized model to achieve better efficiency in operations. The aim is to create a network to digitally connect every part of the country and allow better accessibility of information, product, and services to many people. The agriculture sector is the major contributor to GDP. Therefore the government has taken significant steps over the years to support and enhance the agriculture sector with modern technologies and infrastructure. The recent evolution is the application of digital technology in the agriculture sector that will help accelerate growth and ensure the sustainability of this sector by providing various supports in the form of information, strategies, and techniques.

Benefits of Digitization in Agriculture:

The benefits of digitization in Indian agriculture are well understood and acknowledged. Efforts have been made toward digitizing the prevailing processes to resolve various issues and challenges farmers face and generate effective outcomes. The importance of digital applications in the Indian agriculture sector is acceptable considering the prominence of numerous segregated small-holding farms in the country, making data gathering and integration more complicated. There is a need for updated and helpful information about natural calamities, like droughts and floods, that negatively impact crop growth. Awareness of modern and effective farming methods, crop handling, and marketing is required to improve productivity and income. 

Solutions to all these issues can be possible with digital solutions in the agricultural sector. Farmers get complete information updates and analysis in a digital mode that helps to take the appropriate course of action, leading to increased productivity and low cost. The information on modern soil treatment methods, fertilizer application, and effective use of water resources for irrigation help improve crop yield. The awareness about environmental impacts helps to adopt best agricultural practices to ensure control of pests, prevent soil degradation, and reduce the use of chemicals for crop production. There is no need for paperwork and record keeping, as digital platforms provide quick access to relevant data regarding production, inventories, wastages, and market requirements. All these facilities help to improve the income level and socio-economic condition of farmers in rural India.

Role of the ‘Digital India’ Program:

Digital Technology and the ‘Digital India’ program help farmers to improve farm productivity and income in several ways. These are:

• Better Price for Crops: The impact of digital India can be realized through achieving better market pricing and reducing transaction costs. The digital application has the potential to maintain connectivity between farmers in different parts of the country. This would help farmers to cut dependence on intermediaries and would help reduce the cost to achieve better profitability. Providing updated information on pricing and market demand to help them decide on better crop prices.
• Virtual Connections: Digital India contributes a lot to creating virtual connections for delivering timely information and services to farmers making agriculture productive, profitable, and sustainable. It allows sharing data on soil nature, nutrient requirements, seed quality, and storage facilities to help farmers plan their harvesting. Farmers can relate to each other while dealing with some kind of situation or challenge and become motivated.
• Customized Solutions: Digital technology can be a crucial tool to increase agriculture productivity and profitability by delivering recommendations about harvesting time and crop nature based on real-time weather data, soil variability, seed quality, and projected market prices.
• Improve Income: Digital India’s agriculture movement will help identify needy farmers who require financial support and agricultural subsidies. The fund supported by the government would help to reduce farmers’ debt burden and improve production capacity. The digital database allows farm output and profitability monitoring and guides farmers to invest in effective farming and marketing methods to achieve better productivity and profitability.
• Access To Digital Platforms: The digital tools in the form of mobile apps help farmers access various facilities regarding online trading and transactions. The various farming apps available on mobile devices provide information on weather, agri-news, auctions, classifieds, farm operations, and markets.

‘Digital India’ Initiative by Government:

The various initiatives taken by the Government of India to promote Digital India are:

• Kisan Suvidha app: This app is developed to provide farmers with information on weather, plant protection, seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, and machinery. Suggestions from experts also help them improve crop production using best practices and quality materials. It also provides data on dealers and market prices to guide farmers to take appropriate actions to improve their income opportunities.
• e-NAM: This is an online trading platform for agricultural commodities in India. It gives access to a virtual national agriculture market by farmers, traders, and buyers to perform online commodities trading. This platform or e-market helps in better price comparison and facilitates smooth marketing of agricultural products to gain a competitive advantage.
• AgriMarket App: This mobile application has been launched to provide farmers with updated information about crop prices in the markets within 50km of their device location.
• Web Portals: The government has set up a farmer portal, Kisan call centre, and mKisan portal to help provide recommendations for efficient farming under varying agro-climatic conditions. 

Important Government Data On Digital Agriculture:

1. As of November 2021, more than 1.72 crore farmers & 2.05 lakh traders have been registered on the e-NAM platform.
2. Cisco developed an Agricultural Digital Infrastructure (ADI) solution in August 2019 that enhances knowledge sharing using the data pool created by the Department of Agriculture. 
3. The Jio Agri (JioKrishi) platform launched in February 2020 aims to digitize the agricultural ecosystem along the entire value chain to empower farmers by information and advice.
4. The Digital Agriculture Mission 2021–2025 aims to support agricultural projects based on new technologies, like AI, remote sensing and GIS technology. 

Conclusion:

Adopting digital technology can bring remarkable changes to the Indian agricultural sector. The digital process provides a faster communication of best agricultural practices, weather information, market prices, and region-specific agricultural knowledge that can benefit all farmers.