Putting drones at the centre of a technology-led transformation of Indian agriculture, with support from emerging business models such as digital financing, precision agriculture and rapid awareness building, can boost the country’s GDP by 1-1.5 per cent. It will create at least five lakh jobs in the coming years in India, according to a new World Economic Forum report, “Using Technology to Improve a Billion Livelihoods”.

The report, written by the World Economic Forum’s Centre for Fourth Industrial Revolution, India, in collaboration with Adani Group, was released in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, on Tuesday.

“India’s bold and measured approach to spur unmanned aviation has been celebrated across a wide spectrum of stakeholders. To make the most of this regulatory landscape, drones must be part of the core agri-equipment repertoire alongside tractors, cultivators, ploughs, diggers and combine harvesters to fortify our farms,” said Vignesh Santhanam, Project Lead, Aerospace and Drones, India, World Economic Forum.

Endless possibilities 

“When combined with next-generation imaging technologies, edge-based artificial intelligence and machine learning capabilities, the possibilities are endless. We have always believed that the most meaningful revolutions happen at the intersection of various domains – between military and civil, between drones and AI and between physical and digital. India has taken a lead to establish several forward-looking policies under the guidance of the Prime Minister to make India the drone hub of the world by 2030,” saidAshish Rajvanshi, CEO, Adani Defence & Aerospace; President, Strategy & Chairman Office, Adani Group.

Powerful use cases  

Different studies have highlighted the immense potential in improving agricultural outcomes for farms through precision agriculture expertise and advisory that can enable a 15 per cent increase in productivity in India’s $600 billion agriculture sector. Drones can play a critical role in unlocking this value as they provide an effective medium to collect data and apply inputs, directly impacting yields and farmers’ income. Scaling drones in the agriculture sector will also boost farm mechanisation and nudge India closer to global peers.

Coordinated research  

The report highlights different use cases for drones in agriculture, such as crop monitoring, collecting data for advisory and application of farm inputs.

“Drones are poised to be the enabler of different use cases that leverage Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies. The need is to create a business model that drives rapid adoption and active usage of drones at the farm level. It is possible only if the strengths of different ecosystem stakeholders are leveraged and unit-level value proposition is created for farmers,” said Abhay Pareek, Project Lead, Fourth Industrial Revolution for Agriculture, World Economic Forum, India.

Robust supply chain, support system

In addition, given the nascent state of the drone sector and significant import dependence on various key components, there is a need to build a robust local support system including a “Made in India” supply chain, targeted skill development programmes, next-generation digital financing mechanisms and strong awareness-building programmes in Farmer Producer Organizations, Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs), farmers and policymakers. The report points out that a well-orchestrated set of interventions can add nearly $100 billion to GDP and help India leapfrog multiple challenges in the agriculture sector using technology.

Need for a “drone microcosm”  

The mainstreaming of drones in the agricultural sector needs to be aided by creating a “green microcosm” where an integrated “drone-centric rural hub” is set up and stabilized across crop cycles. The microcosm would be a controlled environment that would test varied use cases pertinent to agriculture as well as other rural applications.

Further, considering the complexity of India’s agriculture system, including different agro-climatic zones, range of crop varieties, despaired use of irrigation technologies etc. drones’ integration in Indian agriculture can be achieved with a form factor of drones and a mission-based approach in partnership and ownership of stakeholders.

“Drone costs fall significantly with local scale. There are multiple use cases on the same drone that can be achieved with a quick switch of payloads – from spraying to broadcasting to logistics. Creating local hubs where these applications can be deployed at scale can establish the business case and help players grow rapidly,” said Rangarajan Vijayaraghavan, Vice-President Strategy & Chairman Office, Adani Group.

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