The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) has introduced an AI-based platform called iSAT to provide personalized climate-smart agricultural advice to smallholder farmers.

The tool aims to help farmers make better decisions amid climate variability by delivering timely and localized information.

Key Points:

• ICRISAT’s iSAT (Intelligent Agricultural Systems Advisory Tool) uses artificial intelligence and weather data to offer stage-wise advisories for farming activities like sowing, irrigation, pest control, and harvesting.
• The tool has been piloted in regions of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Odisha, where it has reached over 6,000 farmers, helping them improve crop planning and risk management.
• iSAT delivers information via SMS and WhatsApp in local languages, making it accessible even in remote and rural communities.
• The platform was developed in collaboration with partners like Microsoft, IMD (India Meteorological Department), and ICAR (Indian Council of Agricultural Research).
• Farmers using iSAT reported higher confidence in decision-making and better outcomes due to timely agro-climatic alerts tailored to their specific crops and regions.