AI needs to be harnessed to improve farmers income: Vice President – Mint

NEW DELHI :Greater use of technology in the agriculture sector and management of food can ensure food security and help in increasing farmers income, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu said on Sunday.

Noting that Indian agriculture is characterized by marginal and small farmers with fewer resources, Naidu said there was a need for increasing farmers income in various ways, including by way of improved resource use efficiency.

The developed world is already reaping benefits from the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in agriculture and India too must harness its potential to help improve farm income," an official statement said quoting the Vice President who spoke at the second annual convocation of Dr Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University, Pusa at its Piprakothi Campus in Bihar.

Naidu asked the University to work on the impact assessment of technologies and also evaluate alternative farming techniques and their sustainability.

Naidu urged the central and state governments, public leaders, universities, research institutions and the media to give more importance to agriculture. We must see that the agri-sector is given all the support that is needed for development and sustenance of agriculture," he said.

Promoting agro-based industries in rural areas would create employment opportunities for the rural youth, the Vice President said. Referring to the phenomena of reverse migration from cities to villages during the Covid-19 pandemic, he said that entrepreneurship in agriculture can immensely benefit the Indian economy by creating jobs in areas where they are needed the most. He emphasised on the need to promote farmer producer organisations through handholding and capacity building.

Referring to the robust agriculture output despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, the Vice President said that this was the first time since 2013-14 that agriculture regained this economic prominence.

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Originally posted here:

AI needs to be harnessed to improve farmers income: Vice President - Mint