Context:

The Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IIT Roorkee) has launched a mobile app named ‘KISAN’ for the farmers. Through this app, agro-meteorological advisory services will be provided to the farmers.

Overview:

=> A farmer’s awareness program was organized by IIT Roorkee under the Gramin Krishi Mausam Sewa (GKMS) project. Farmers from Dehradun, Haridwar, and Pauri Garhwal districts took part in this program.

=> The participating farmers were taught about the Agromet Advisory Services which is jointly provided by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) and AMFU Roorkee.

=> Agromet Advisory Services are already being provided twice a week to the farmers of six blocks of Haridwar. Through this KISAN app, the bulletins can be accessed via mobile phone.

=> One unique feature of this app is that advisory bulletin and weather forecasts will be displayed only for that particular block that has been selected by the farmers.

=> The farmers can share feedbacks regarding the bulletins that they are receiving, which will in turn help in providing better services.

=> Under the supervision of Dr. C S Jha, at Regional Remote Sensing Centre (RRSC), National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), ISRO, Hyderabad, Dr. Khushboo Mirza, Senior Scientist, RRSC, NRSC, ISRO developed the ‘KISAN’ app.

=> As per the requirements of the farmers, this app will be updated.

About Gramin Krishi Mausam Sewa:

The Ministry of Earth Sciences launched Gramin Krishi Mausam Sewa to provide farmers with crop-specific information twice a week via print, visual, radio, and IT such as SMS. GKMS has been implemented by Indian Meteorological Department in association with different state agriculture universities and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research.

Conclusion:

As of now, the app provides information to the farmers of Haridwar, and soon in the upcoming months, it will cover the farmers of the districts of Pauri Garhwal and Dehradun. Soon the app will start covering the whole of Uttarakhand.

By: ASRAF UDDIN AHMED