Agriculture has always played an important role in the lives of many Indians. India’s climate and soil are ideal for growing a variety of crops, making it a global powerhouse in food production. India is a global powerhouse in food production and is self-sufficient in terms of food security. It has always been an important part of Indian culture.
The Green Revolution in the 1960s, led by M.S. Swaminathan, brought the country self-sufficiency in terms of food security and a net exporter of agricultural products. Now, a new concept is expected to take it to new heights in terms of yield, quality, and productivity, digitization. Agriculture has been used for thousands of years, but recently there has been a change in agriculture with the advent of technologies such as GPS, drones, and IoT or the Internet of Things. These technologies help farmers do things more efficiently and at an affordable cost, which was not possible before.
Statistics of Agriculture in India
A research report published in Betway shows, the agricultural sector has grown in many ways over the past decade, despite not achieving the growth rate of other sectors. In 2020, the sector grew 3.6 percent overall and 3.9 percent due to various government-related schemes, such as Atma Nirbhar Bharat (ANB) Abhiyan. According to World Bank estimates, as of 2020 agriculture employs approximately 41.5 percent of the population and contributes approximately 18 percent to GVA in India.
According to World Bank estimates, the agricultural sector accounts for approximately 41.5 percent of total employment in India as of 2020. The contribution of this sector to India’s GDP has grown significantly over the years; agricultural production contributes 17.8 percent to GDP in 2019, increasing to 19.9 percent in 2020. As of 2020, agricultural exports totaled US$41.3 billion. This amount increased to US$49.6 billion the following year. Fourth Advance Estimates show that total food grain production increased substantially from 297 million metric tons in 2019 to 308 million metric tons in 2020.
Digitization and its Implications
Digitization of the agricultural industry means that technology is being used in previously uncommon ways. Agri-tech is a term for this process, which involves extensive use of modern technologies like the internet and big data to complement various aspects of agricultural ecosystems. On the farm level, data collected from various primary sources like drones, sensors, and machinery are used to provide farmers with important information from cultivation sites at all times.
These devices are used in conjunction with satellites that provide weather-related information which enables producers to monitor crop growth in real-time, calculate plot performance, and forecast output with considerable accuracy. Also involved is artificial intelligence (AI), which is used to interpret data and give powerful recommendations about how best to maximize yield quantities and quality. Therefore, all these modern technologies are sure to improve the overall productivity as well as the growth of agriculture in the country with a better overall output of food products.