India's agricultural sector is a crucial part of the economy, supporting the livelihoods of about 42.3 percent of the population and contributing 18.2 percent to the country’s GDP at current prices, as per the Economic Survey 2023-24. While agriculture has shown growth over the years, the sector is particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Soil degradation, desertification, unseasonal and erratic rainfall, droughts and floods are among the few challenges impacting agricultural production.
To address these challenges, ITC is focusing on scaling its MAARS ecosystem (Metamarket for Advanced Agriculture and Rural Services). With plans to engage 10 million farmers over the next 4-5 years, ITC aims to expand its reach to several key states, including Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and Bihar.
ITC provides a 'phygital' platform in partnership with Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) to offer personalised support to farmers. This includes services like weather forecasts, guidance on selling crops at market prices (‘mandi prices’), soil testing and assistance with getting bank loans. Through ITCMAARS application, ITC aims to improve farming practices for small farmers by using technology, AI-driven solutions, AgTech (Agricultural Technology) and an online marketplace for farming products and inputs.
What’s in Store for Farmers?
With the help of the ITCMAARS app, crop, location and weather-based specific crop advisory is given in a ‘phygital’ manner, wherein relevant information is provided through mobile application. Through this app, farmers would be able to share their grievances and seek real-time resolution while on field, support would be provided through a team of experts.
The AI-enabled Image Analytics feature called ‘Crop Doctor’ offers real-time identification and resolution of pest-related risks and threats – saving farmers from crop loss. ‘Crop Calendar’, another feature of the app, helps farmers plan their activities systematically. Farmers can also avail recommendations on crop nutrition enabling improvement in crop yields and quality. The application further provides a remote sensing based crop monitoring services for app users.
According the company, services on the app are offered in all major Indian languages. Available in various Indian regional languages, the feature deploys voice-to-text-technology to deliver personalised guidance to the users (farmers). Considering ITC's expansion plans, the multi-lingual service offered by the app holds significant promise.
The 'Climate Smart Technologies and Sustainable Farming' feature allows farmers to produce crops in a sustainable manner and mitigate the devastating effects of climate change by increasing farm productivity and income, thereby strengthening farmers' resilience to climate change.
ITCMAARS disseminates information related to climate resilient and high yielding crop varieties among farmers. It also provides crop diversification and enables promotion of climate smart agricultural practices through the use of bio-fertilisers, bio-pesticides and nano-fertilisers.
ITCMAARS is part of the conglomerate's Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) programme, which aims to build climate resilience by promoting agriculture practices in its value chains and implementing nature-based solutions.
The super app also offers drone-based fertilisation services as well as precision farming through IoT (internet of things) devices like solar power weather stations and moisture sensors.
'Krishi Mitra', an AI chatbot developed in collaboration with Microsoft resolves farmer queries submitted on the app.
ITCMAARS facilitates the use of Kisan Credit Card (KCC) for providing loans to farmers and providing pre-approved working capital loan for FPOs. Additionally, it supports FPOs through capacity-building, governance, compliance and operations management.
The application also provides a community platform in the application, enabling sharing of farming best practices, dissemination of expert advice and resolution of varied issues by farmers.
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What is a Phygital Ecosytem?
Phygital refers to the combination of two services, i.e., physical and digital services to create more personalised and immersive experiences. Phygital is a key component of the ITCMAARS model, blending physical and digital experiences to provide farmers with real-time advice, AI-driven assistance and a community platform for sharing best practices. This innovative ecosystem is designed to empower farmers to overcome climate change challenges while boosting productivity and income.
With its innovative, ‘phygital’ model, ITCMAARS is set to support both sustainable farming practices and economic growth for farmers across India.
