Introduction about Precision Farming: Tamil Nadu Precision Farming Project was a Tamil Nadu State sponsored turnkey project was implemented at Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri districts in 400 ha with a total budget of 7.20 lakhs for a period of three years (2004-05 to 2006-07). It is a State Mega demo which had trained the farmers and empowered technically, economically and socially. TNPFP propagate a novel method of farming that takes adequate care of technology upgradation and marketing support. TNPFP tailors inputs – water, fertilizer and pesticides – in a measured form to match verifying growth stage of each crop on the field. TNPFP adopts a location specific, field specific and crop specific approach. The objective is optimisation of inputs use to facilitate optimal output resulting in saving of valuable resources like water and energy. The project had adequately prepared the farmers for market driven production at a time when MNCs like Wall Mart, Carry Four, Tesco, Wools Worth, Reliance, Barti –Telecom Food Bazaar, Blue Foods, Future Group, Priya Gold, Subhiksha, Pantaloon, Mother Dairy, Metro, House CHRT and Adani are all set for invasion into retail vegetable market in India.
400 ha were planted with 23 kinds of crops over three years and recorded 60 % increase in yield and 90 % marketable quality. The buyers and sellers meets have now became every day affair in as much as the cluster level associations and District level federations of the farmers assumed bargaining powers both for sale of the produce and for purchase of inputs as well. The site has now become the training ground for the farmers of rest of the state.
Precision Farming Technologies, Guidelines and Farmer Selection Forms are given below. Click the respective item to download them in pdf formats:
