New Delhi: IFFCO Kisan Sanchar Ltd. in association with HIMALAYA drug company launched organic ashwagandha farming programme over 50 acres in the Ratlam district of Madhya Pradesh.

The initiative started with the aim to enhance the aswagandha yield per acre while increasing the number of acres multifold in the coming seasons engaged over 50 farmers in the district.

To ensure high quality organic product, the farming was carried out in purely organic NPON+NOP certified farms which deployed organic/ non-GMO seeds for the complete realization of quality output.

IFFCO Kisan Sanchar Ltd.’s intervention at the farming level with the backup of integrated tech solutions has been instrumental in strengthening the farming practices. The hi-tech farm technologies driven by IoT devices aid in soil testing, satellite imagery analysis on vegetation index and its soil moisture stress.

In addition to these, reverse-image mapping automatically diagnose the pest and disease while the crop simulation model monitors the irrigation plan. 

Under the programme around 500 kg seeds have been sown perfectly accompanied by agro advisories, remote sensing, image recognition which overall contribute to farm traceability.

IFFCO Kisan Sanchar Ltd. supports the programme by sharing voice and text messages on daily basis for 60 seconds keep the farmers updated. The company also monitors farming at every step with the help of Artificial Intelligence. This not just diagnoses problems related to crop but also makes the farmers aware about the best use of resources and resolves their queries regarding crops, insecticides, pesticides while delivering precise status of the farming land through AI.

IFFCO Kisan Sanchar Ltd. keeps the farmers updated about the Monsoon arrival, soil moisture, nutrients in the farm, and guides them when the farm is ready for the farming by accessing their own device installed in the farmlands. 

AI-enabled IFFCO Kisan Sanchar Ltd. mobile application has been used to capture farmer and farm profiling to document the farm activities such as seed, organic inputs used, date of irrigation, etc., to monitor the field notes and capture images of disease, pests.

IFFCO Kisan Sanchar Ltd. though digital tools is practicing the traceability in cultivation practice to produce commodities with minimal residue levels and is facilitating the farmers in adopting technology platforms to sensitize them towards smart agriculture practice.