The Indian government is increasingly adopting advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence, to tackle agricultural challenges, enhance crop productivity, improve supply chain efficiency, and raise farmers’ income, said Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Ramnath Thakur.
Replying in writing to a question by Vijayawada MP Kesineni Sivanath (Chinni) in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, the Minister said AI is helping improve farmers’ decision-making, agricultural practices, and income levels.
He cited the Kisan e-Mitra chatbot, which offers voice-based responses to farmers on schemes such as PM-Kisan, crop insurance, and the Kisan Credit Card. Available in 11 regional languages, the chatbot handles more than 8,000 queries a day and has answered over 9.3 million questions so far.
The government has also deployed a National Pest Monitoring System that uses AI and machine learning to support early detection of pest attacks. More than 10,000 agricultural extension personnel are using the tool, which can identify 432 types of pests across 66 crop varieties.
For Kharif 2025, AI-based monsoon forecasts were prepared for 13 States and shared with 3.88 million farmers through the M-Kisan platform, with 31 to 52% of them reportedly modifying cultivation decisions based on the advisories.
Mr. Thakur said partnerships with agritech startups, private firms, and research institutions are supporting the development of AI solutions for blockchain-based traceability, logistics optimisation, and quality assessment. Successful models are being scaled up to more States, warehouses, districts, and farmers’ producer organisations.
He said AI-led interventions are modernising Indian agriculture, ensuring timely decisions, improving productivity, and protecting farmers’ livelihoods.
Published – December 09, 2025 06:33 pm IST
