Union Budget 2021: Digital Farm Management can Revolutionize Agriculture in India

Farm management platforms have always been at the forefront of innovation in agriculture. The use of disruptive technologies has been adding immense value and strengthening the agriculture management efforts of producers. The Union Budget 2021 has also highlighted the significance of agriculture management platforms with proposals focusing majorly on the digitalisation of agriculture. Incorporating a tech-driven farm management platform is thus, the best way for agribusinesses to boost their growth prospects in 2021.

The Union Budget 2021 has introduced significant measures that have the potential to solve infrastructure, credit, and technology access issues of farmers. 2021 is all set to be a great year for Indian agriculture, bringing immense technology benefits for farmers and stakeholders.

The proposal of raising agricultural credit to INR 16.5 lakh crores was one of the major highlights of the Union Budget 2021. This increase in credit can be beneficial to smallholders for CapEx and can also enhance their working capital during the crop cycle.

The Agricultural Infrastructure and Development Cess (AIDC) proposed in the budget can generate good revenue and play a vital role in strengthening the agricultural supply chain. The ‘Digital India’ movement can be instrumental in promoting tech-based projects and can uplift the socioeconomic status of rural farmers.

Uberisation of Agriculture – Fortifying Smallholder Potential and Rural Development

The Union Budget 2021 saw a rise in the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF) to Rs. 40,000 crore. It was also announced that the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committees (APMCs) are now eligible to utilize the 1 lakh crore financing facility under the AIF. Availability of post-harvest infrastructures as well as enhancement in the market infrastructures can ensure better price realisation for farmers.

Uberisation of agriculture is emerging as a promising prospect in strengthening the potential of smallholder farmers. FarmERP, a tech-driven farm management platform, is making agriculture more predictable through its uberisation of agriculture project. This project focuses on establishing profitable market linkages and making smallholders more independent with the technology solutions of our farm management platform.

By digitally mapping and analysing farm activities, farm management platforms can help in bringing more accuracy into the activities of smallholders. These agriculture management platforms can also be useful in determining the right produce values and tracing agriproducts across the supply chain. FarmERP’s smart agritech platform can thus reinforce the farm management efforts of smallholders through uberisation.

Transforming Trade With 1000 More Mandis – Digital Mandi is the Future

The government achieved the integration of 1000 mandis with the electronic National Agricultural Market (e-NAM) across 18 states and 3 union territories in May 2020. Of these, 585 were integrated in phase 1 while 415 in phase 2. This integration has brought immense benefits to the farmers and helped in strengthening the mandi system in India.

The success of e-NAM in these mandis has proved to be a definitive solution for the mission of strengthening the agricultural markets. As a result, the government in the Union Budget 2021 has announced that 1000 more mandis will be integrated with e-NAM in 2021-22.

Digital mandis can improve farmer trading opportunities with the incorporation of next-gen technologies which can be offered by farm management platforms. It has reduced their dependence on intermediaries and enabled them to carry out all their trade activities virtually. By improving market access, Digital mandis have also provided a major boost to farmers’ bargaining power and significantly upscaled their profit margins. The digitalisation of mandis is thus promising a brighter future for the Indian agricultural sector.

Achieve Top-notch R&D Results with Farm Management Technology

In the Union Budget 2021, the Department of Agricultural Research and Education has been allocated over Rs 8,513 crore. The Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers’ Welfare has seen a reduction of more than Rs 10,000 crore in its budget as compared to 2020. However, the allocated figure of over Rs 1,23,017 crore is still higher than the revised estimate (RE) figure for the current financial year.

Research and development is a critical aspect in agriculture that fosters productivity and sustainability through innovation. It focuses on finding unique approaches that fortify the pest resistance, water management, cultivation and many other aspects of agriculture. The infusion of farm management platforms in the assessment of these approaches can bring a paradigm shift in the entire agricultural value chain.

The innovative agricultural solutions by farm management platforms around the globe are the result of extensive research and development initiatives. FarmERP, with its excellent agritech expertise, has been contributing to the numerous inventions that are revolutionising the agricultural sector. With our smart farm management platform and agritech expertise, we have the potential to partner with R&D establishments across the world. Agribusinesses can partner with us to work on projects and joint ventures in the field of agriculture, Internet of things, Big Data, fisheries, etc.

‘Digital India’ Movement – Techpowering India’s Agri Supply Chains

With the incorporation of innovative agritech solutions, farm management platforms today are paving the way for a productive agriculture future. With digitalisation in agriculture, farm management platforms are transforming and making the supply chains operations more data-driven. This is enabling agribusinesses to better handle their value chains, right from reducing inventory costs to accelerating the time to market.

Along with enhancing the food production capabilities of producers, farm management platforms can also streamline the information flows across agri supply chains. Advanced farm management platforms, by integrating IoT tools and providing farm analytics support, can ensure the seamless functioning of end-to-end agricultural operations. Smart farm traceability solutions are also playing a significant role in bringing more transparency across the supply chain and fortifying food safety efforts.

The Union Budget 2021 has shed light on the importance of agritech and farm management platforms. The proposed initiatives focus on digitalising agriculture and improving the potential of smallholder farmers to make their agricultural activities more efficient.

FarmERP’s farm management platform can optimize the cultivation practices of and ensure better incomes for smallholders through smart tech-intervention. By digitalising agricultural supply chains, we can bring in more transparency and make agriculture more predictable.

The digital farm management platform of FarmERP is committed to boosting the overall efficiency of farming while making ‘sustainable agriculture’ a new normal. Two of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – Zero Hunger and Climate change, are our guiding light for driving the holistic growth of the agriculture industry.

Reach out to us to know more about how FarmERP’s farm management platform can help uplift your agribusiness digitally in the coming years.