Did you know that India ranks second in farm output in the world? An output of the Green Revolution! Green Revolution has considerably added to the production of crop production. But has Green Revolution really benefitted the farming and farmers of India? This is a long-debated issue which fails to find its answer. The increase in production has been welcomed with open arms but on the other hand, the fertility and environment impact is still a big question!
More than 65% of the rural population is engaged in agriculture which leads to an average income of approximately Rs.6500 a month. This is a clear indication of under-employment and low per capita. These numbers clearly point out that an unsustainably excessive part of the population is dependent on agriculture and that we need to wean away labor out of agriculture to other sectors. The prevailing situation also calls for a need for major policy measures to boost the rural economy and create new infrastructure for the agricultural sector. It is unfortunate that the farmers are unaware of the new farming equipment and agricultural techniques. It has become very important to make farmers realize the importance of and need for new technologies.
Use of Existing: Farming Implements In India
There are a lot of new developments in the farming sector with modern mechanized tools that can help in crop production. India, in the 21st century, is getting Improved agricultural implements and new mechanized farming tools. We can review the importance of farming techniques, which can lead to high crop yield and maintenance of the fertility of the soil while saving time and utilizing it in other fields. Equally, we should not forget that taking care of the fields and crops is important along with a revolution in farming equipment in India.
Small changes that do not require any technical knowledge should be encouraged and farmers should be educated by conducting. E.g.
- Farmers should use tractors instead of relying on animals.
- Use seed drill to increase agricultural efficiency.
- Pressure sprayer should be used throughout the farm to protect the crops from being infected.
- Sprinklers should be used to evenly irrigate plants for healthy and consistent growth.
This simple implementation of existing machines and improved agricultural implements can help farmers with the crop yield as well as better health as a load of heavy supplies is reduced.
But now, more and more innovations have taken place in the agricultural field and these new technologies need to be promoted for the agricultural processes. The next big step needs to be taken to lead onto the path of fruitful farming!
The need of New Techniques
It is important for farmers to understand the need for new techniques. New techniques can help farmers save time which can be productively used in other activities and professions. For how long can they be dependent on – Monsoon, Limited Irrigation and Old Methods of farming? It is a shame that an agricultural country like India has to go through the evil practice of Crop Residue Burning to prepare farms for the next season. If only modern techniques and farming equipment were used, then India would not have seen the burning of 19-20 million tonnes of paddy straw, which could have been widely used for other uses. The agricultural efficiency can be improved by introducing the latest agricultural implements on the field for the smooth cultivation of land. It is the farmers who need to understand the importance of modern farming equipment in India.
Limited use of mechanized farming techniques has prevented the development of a more organized and productive agricultural sector. India is aware of the technologies but the farmers fail to adopt due to the cost of the new agro machines and knowledge. Financial viability has to be leveraged by the government and introduce renting machines or schemes like Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana so that new technologies can be brought in to practice.
New Agro Machines and Techniques for India
Indian farmers are using some technologies but they need to take the next step and be well versed with other factors that improve the yield other than just the High Yielding Varity (HYV) seeds. They have to discover the soil requirement for their particular crop; know the land and atmospheric conditions for their crop as they are different for different crops; have the knowledge of when and how to use pesticides; have the knowledge of the right tools to be used with precision for farming.
Seeding is a core practice in crop production. This is an important process that determines the care for the rest of the crop cycle. JCBL offers a wide range of implements that are useful for seeding directly post-harvest or after-bed preparation. Our agricultural implements simplify the work of the farmers, saving time which they can utilize to improve crop yield or prepare better for the upcoming season.
Must Read: How to Modernize Agriculture in India?
With technology-enabled solutions, on soil data, crop variety, productivity, and nutrients lost in the soil; farms and farmers can prosper. Now, tractors come with agricultural implements like cultivators or broadcast seeders which greatly help in a plantation of crops. Disc rotators attached with the tractor disperses seedlings evenly. Seeds can be easily drilled without much effort and labor of the farmer. Water sprinkler helps to irrigate large parts evenly.
Other new agricultural technologies that are of great importance are sensors and automated agricultural machines. Sensors track real-time information on farms and ancillary infrastructure along with the habitat of animals which can help in improving farming practices. Some of the areas where they are applied are - soil sensors, crop sensors, and livestock biometrics.
With the recently launched Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana, the government is keen to support and reach irrigation to every farm. Agro machine manufacturers have to support agricultural growth in the country.
Automation is another area that is gaining popularity has good potential to improve farming methods for the future. The chores of planting, harvesting and irrigating can be automated with absolute accuracy.
You never know that in the future, you may see a swarm of agricultural bots working on the farm in a network to sustain the farming industry. The benefits of Automation could be less human intervention, more productivity of crops, less environmental waste and fewer farm injuries.
The intervention of the Private Sector
Modern agro-technologies are prevalent in developed countries but they need to be adopted in developing countries like India. The private sector has played an important role in the advancement of the agro-technologies, and now the same needs to be arranged in India. Even the government needs to actively participate and encourage farmers to use modern techniques with incentives. With the vision of ‘Make In India’, government involvement and government adhered innovation and investment is increasing. Now, it is the modern agricultural implements and machine manufacturers that need to bring innovation and new agro-techniques to Modernised Farmlands of India.
In the seed sector, the growing need for R&D along with developments in agrochemicals such as increasing use of bio-fertilizers and bio-release smart fertilizers has been developed.
The farm implements sector, however, is yet to become a major market segment and tractors remain a major sector of investment. The irrigation sub-sector also needs to evolve for Indian farming with large investments.
Future with Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) and Artificial Intelligence (AI)
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With recent advancements in technology coupled with favorable government policies, we have seen many agro-tech start-ups. AI comes as a great boon to the agricultural sector which is heavily dependent on climatic conditions which are often unpredictable.
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV)
A small airplane called as an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) can be used to monitor and observe important data like multispectral imagery, visual and thermal imagery, humidity, the weather condition at a resolution of up to 1 cm/pixel and air pressure. This data can help the farmer make an informed decision.
Artificial intelligence (AI)—
- Crop and Soil Monitoring– crop and soil health can be monitored with sensors.
- Predictive Agricultural Analytics–Farming practices due to lack of access to the scientific understanding of crop lifecycle, pests, quality metrics, and the latest micro-fertilizers. Supply Chain Efficiencies– Real-time data analytics can be used for the efficient and smart supply chain.
- Agricultural Product Grading—Crop diseases or pest infestation in the crops can be accessed by an image on a farmer’s phone and determine the product quality in real time, without any manual intervention. Farmers just need to know the operation of an app on their phone.
These modern techniques are the future of Indian Agriculture. They capture complete information about the commodities (growing information, pre- and post-harvest, transportation, warehousing, etc.) and proactively advice farmers on sowing, pest control, harvesting, etc.
To know more about Agriculture Implements , that bring innovation to agriculture visit: JCBL Agri Solutions