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Shivraj Chouhan Launches AI-Powered Bharat-VISTAAR for Farmers in Jaipur

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan arrived in Jaipur to launch the AI-based digital companion 'Bharat-VISTAAR'. The platform is designed to provide farmers with integrated information on weather, market prices, pests, soil health, and government schemes. It features a voice-first AI system accessible via a helpline number for farmers with basic phones, alongside chatbot and app interfaces. The launch event also included the unveiling of an 'AI for Agriculture Roadmap' and announcements for an AI Hackathon and 'AgriKosh'.

Key Points: Bharat-VISTAAR AI Platform Launched for Farmers by Shivraj Chouhan

  • AI-powered digital platform for farmers
  • Provides weather, market prices & pest info
  • Accessible via phone call & chatbot
  • Launched in Hindi & English initially
  • Part of broader 'AI for Agriculture Roadmap'
2 min read

Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan arrives in Jaipur to launch Bharat-VISTAAR

Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launches Bharat-VISTAAR, an AI digital platform to provide farmers with weather, market prices, and crop advice.

"deliver reliable information to farmers by connecting various government and scientific sources - Ministry of Agriculture"

Jaipur, February 17

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan arrived at Jaipur airport on Tuesday ahead of the scheduled launch of the new digital companion 'Bharat-VISTAAR', aimed at benefiting farmers across the country.

The inauguration will be held in the presence of Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma.

According to a Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare release, this AI-based platform will provide farmers with information on weather, market prices, pests and diseases, soil, crop advice, and government schemes, all in one place, via phone calls, chatbots, and, later, an app.

In Phase-1, this facility will start in Hindi and English and will reach lakhs of farmers in several states, including Maharashtra, Bihar and Gujarat. The launch program will see virtual participation from lakhs of farmers across the country through the networks of state agriculture ministers, Indian Council of Agricultural Research(ICAR), Krishi Vigyan Kendra's (KVKs), agricultural universities, and other agricultural institutions.

'AI for Agriculture Roadmap' will also be launched by Union Minister Chouhan and CM Sharma, while announcements of 'AI Hackathon' and 'AgriKosh' will also be made by them.

Bharat-VISTAAR is the Government of India's farmer-centric, AI-powered digital public infrastructure, which will deliver reliable information to farmers by connecting various government and scientific sources. On this platform, farmers will be able to view information and status related to weather, market prices, pests and diseases, soil health, crop management, and at least 10 major central government schemes.

It has been designed as a Voice-First AI so that even a farmer with a simple feature phone can benefit from it just by making a call. For this, the telephonic helpline number 155261 has been linked to the platform, along with facilities like voice input-output, website, and mobile site chatbot, and an Android app will also be released.

The launch ceremony in Jaipur will see the participation of Union Minister of State for Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare Bhagirath Choudhary, Ram Nath Thakur, Rajasthan Agriculture Minister Kirodi Lal Meena, Members of Parliament, MLAs, other public representatives, senior officials from the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Rajasthan Chief Secretary, and top officials of the state Agriculture Department.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

S
Sarah B
As someone who works in rural development, I've seen many digital schemes fail due to poor implementation. I hope the AI is trained on local dialects and conditions, not just textbook Hindi. The success will be in the execution and local relevance.
P
Priya S
Great to see tech being used for farmers! But please, please include more regional languages quickly. Phase-1 is only Hindi/English? What about farmers in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, or the Northeast? They need this info in their mother tongue. Jai Kisan!
V
Vikram M
Finally, a single platform for all schemes and info. My father spends hours trying to understand different government yojanas. If this reduces that confusion and middlemen, it will be a huge service to the annadata of the nation.
R
Rohit P
Hope the weather and pest alerts are hyper-local and timely. A general forecast for a district is useless. It needs to be block or village-level data. Also, the helpline must have enough capacity to handle lakhs of calls without dropping.
K
Kavya N
The AI Hackathon is a good idea to get young innovators involved. Agriculture needs fresh ideas. Let's hope the data from this platform is also made available (anonymously) for students and startups to build even more solutions.

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