India News | Centre Launches Tech-driven Initiatives for Farmers

New Delhi, Jul 21 (PTI) The Centre on Friday launched three tech-driven initiatives to help farmers access accurate and timely weather data, assess yield estimate and avail crop insurance.

Crucial weather-related information and data will be available to the farmers through the Weather Information Data Information System (WINDS), Earth Sciences Minister Kiren Rijiju said at the launch event.

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"The goal is to bridge the gap in weather information availability and empower decision makers, farmers and stakeholders at the grassroots level," Rijiju said.

Keeping in view the challenges of obtaining accurate meteorological data from inadequate infrastructure, the WINDS initiative lays emphasis on setting up a strong network of weather stations, he said.

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Through this initiative, the target is to establish a wide network of weather stations at the block and gram panchayat levels, Rijiju said, adding that such a strategic approach will ensure widespread access to accurate and timely weather data.

The government also launched the Yield Estimation System (YES-Tech) Manual for yield assessment and the Intermediary Enrolment (AIDE) mobile application for crop insurance.

Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, who also attended the launch event, said the YES-TECH Manual is a comprehensive guide developed after extensive testing and piloting in 100 districts of the country.

Explaining further about YES-TECH, Tomar said the technology-driven yield estimation system will offer methodologies, best practices, and integration insights for accurate yield assessments at the Gram Panchayat level, Tomar said.

The AIDE app's introduction on the Android platform aims to revolutionise the enrolment process for crop insurance schemes, bringing it directly to the doorstep of farmers, the minister said.

"This door-to-door enrolment ensures a seamless and transparent process, making crop insurance more accessible and convenient for farmers," Tomar added.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)