Three challenges to overcome, for the success of agriculture 4.0 in India

By Aneesh Jain, Founder of Four Leaf Clover (operating under the brand name ‘Gram Unnati’), a DPIIT-recognised agri value chain services company

India’s agriculture industry is amidst a digital revolution that is turning challenges in agriculture into a world of endless opportunities. This has been augmented by the proliferation of agri-tech firms that aim to bring in a paradigm shift in technologies in Indian agriculture 4.0.

Globally the agriculture sector has been impacted by rising labour costs and the unpredictability of weather patterns. Here comes agriculture 4.0, where digital and the physical world converge while advocating for sustainable farming. An increase in connected areas and plummeting cost of connected devices and automation technologies have emerged as the key drivers of agriculture 4.0.

But one fundamental question that comes up every time we talk about agriculture 4.0 in the context of Indian agriculture is how inclusive can digital technology be for the farmers, particularly the smallholders? With the skills and knowledge to boost their productivity, yields, and incomes to previously unachievable levels, digital innovation offers smallholders the opportunity to reclaim their rightful place at the forefront of a sustainable agriculture revolution. The government launched the Digital Agriculture Mission in 2021, which aims to improve the sector’s overall performance by leveraging a wide range of latest technologies like AI, Blockchain, drone technology, etc.

Ambitious as it may sound but government policies and cutting-edge technology aren’t always easy to access for Indian farmers. Most of our agriculture industry is made up of smallholders who are either not aware or lack access to numerous government programmes, subsidies, and the latest technology in the market primarily due to infrastructure deficit.

In light of this, the government and agri-tech companies must seek to address the following challenges in order for agriculture 4.0 to be successful, especially for the smallholders:

Slow uptake of digital technology by smallholders: For agriculture 4.0 to be an outright success, it is very important to make this segment of farmers champions of digital technology. So far it seems, smallholders who represent the vast majority of the Indian agricultural industry, have been largely hesitant in adopting digital technology, which could slow down the sector’s acceptance and growth. This can mostly be attributed to the fact that many farmers do not perceive any immediate benefits from embracing technology, such as an increase in revenue or productivity. And because they have been slow to adopt it, data collection — the base of agriculture 4.0 — is likely to be a particularly a challenging task. Low penetration of mechanisation equipment and frequent natural disasters like droughts, floods, and severe monsoon rains have also had a significant impact on the assimilation of digital solutions as farmers are yet to recognise the contribution of digital technology in adapting to or mitigating the impact of climate-related risks.

Poor connectivity and infrastructure deficit in rural areas: Although not all technological solutions are internet based, it is a crucial element for greater accessibility. While about 67 percent of urban residents are active internet users as of 2020, just about 32 percent of all rural residents fall into this category. This has slowed down the impact of digital adoption in Indian agriculture in rural areas. The development of infrastructure that enables presence closer to farmgate together with digital technology-led services such as Internet of Things, Big Data, and Artificial Intelligence and the like can help to offset productivity and profitability losses in food value chains and reduce agrarian stress. This will require a change in the production infrastructure, which will include connected farms, new production machinery, linked commodities exchanges for price discovery, proper storage facilities, access to credit, access to internet, logistical support, etc. This will make it possible to improve quality, production, and will also ensure environmental preservation. The implementation of digital agriculture on a typical Indian small farm would require a customised strategy, which could then be scaled up and made available to many Indian farmers.

A cohesive strategy is the need of the hour: Several of the programs and the subsidy schemes run by the government tend to run independently. According to the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations-Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (ICRIER-OECD) report, despite the abundance of programmes implemented to assist and subsidise Indian farmers, certain regressive marketing policies (both domestic and international trade policies) and a lack of basic infrastructure for storage, transportation, and other purposes have led to net losses for Indian farmers. Keeping in mind resource limitations, it is very necessary to adopt a more structured strategy for boosting the number of bankable agribusiness and agri-infrastructure projects in order to encourage long-term private sector investment. The need of the hour is a cohesive strategy by the government with an emphasis on public-private partnerships for overcoming problems. By combining the effectiveness, adaptability, and competency of the private sector with the public sector’s accountability, long-term vision, and social interest, public-private partnerships provide an ideal policy strategy to promote social and economic growth.

Indian agriculture is at a critical juncture as it transitions to agriculture 4.0. Modernising the agriculture sector by adding cutting-edge technologies can benefit farmers’ incomes as well as the nation’s food and nutrition security while also being environment- friendly. The agricultural sector is ready to be taken over by science and technology, from biotechnology to Big Data, to boost output and efficiency so that more people can be fed while growing more food on less land. However, we need to be careful about how inclusive we are when trying to accomplish more with less.