BENEFITS OF PRECISION FARMING

India has largely been an agrarian country, since times of lore. Even now, more than 52% of the population is actively engaged in agricultural activities. For centuries, Indians have cultivated crops using knowledge passed down generations, trial & error and feeling the soil quality with their hands. Only recently, technology has made inroads into the countryside with machinery and are balancing the usage of cattle with tractors.

We’re in the midst of witnessing a new farming revolution triggered by the adoption of spectacular new technologies: high precision GPS systems, smart sensors and a range of IT applications combined with high-tech engineering.

For a long time, traditional farming depended on managing entire fields based on regional conditions and time-trusted manual techniques. The new age Precision Farming is based on information technology, which enables the farmer to understand the health of his farms. Through stationary or remote-mounted sensors, and camera-equipped drones, a farmer receives the data in real time on individual plants which shows signs of stress and health issues. Accordingly, they deliver water, pesticide or fertilizer in calibrated doses to only those plants. The technology can also help farmers decide when to plant & harvest crops.

Some of the key benefits of Precision Farming are:

• Monitor Soil & Plant Parameters: Growers can determine peak conditions for plant growth by placing sensors throughout the fields.
• Help Automate Field Management: Soil and plant species can be automatically optimized through sensors taken from a Decision Support System, which can help determine the best time for giving water and fertilizer.
• Collect Real-time Data: Applying sensing devices throughout the field will allow a continuous monitoring of the chosen parameters and offers real-time data to help inform decisions.
• Get optimum results from Labour & Resources: Use technology to help maximize the benefits of your crop nutrients, crop protection and irrigation costs by using automatic sensors.

As the world’s population is growing, farmers will need to produce more food from limited resources. Arable land is decreasing, water resources are depleting, and many more factors are looming food security threat could easily evolve into regional or even global instability. Majority of the large farms are increasingly using precision farming to increase yields and reduce waste. It is also extremely feasible to the Indian agricultural scenario as it increases farm productivity while decreasing production cost and minimizing environmental impacts.

By Team Mahyco