Evaluating the Expediency of Smartphone Applications for Indian Farmers and Other Stakeholders
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Method of Evaluating Smartphone Applications
Evaluation Criteria
3. Applications for Farmers
- Common features of smartphone applications available to farmers
- ❖
- Weather forecast: The Meghdoot application provides information to farmers on weather and cloud formation detected by satellite sensors that will help in planning their farming practices;
- ❖
- Crop pest and disease diagnosis: The recommendations to mitigate and prevent major pest and disease infestations and nutritional deficiencies through the uploading of the specific crop’s image. As shown in Figure 2, riceXpert and Crop Doctor applications deliver solutions to the farmers’ problems through expert knowledge reviewed by entomologists and pathologists along with preloaded photographs and recommendations.
Name of the Application | Number of Downloads | Accessibility | User-Friendliness | Periodical Updates | User Ratings * |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Crop Doctor | *** | **** | **** | *** | **** |
Crop Insurance | *** | **** | *** | *** | *** |
FARMS | *** | ***** | ** | ** | *** |
Meghdoot | *** | ***** | ** | **** | **** |
Farm Calculators | *** | ***** | *** | ***** | **** |
Solapur Anar | ** | ** | ***** | *** | **** |
Pashu Poshan | ** | *** | ** | *** | **** |
riceXpert | ** | ** | ***** | **** | **** |
Arka Bagwani | ** | *** | ** | * | *** |
Havaamaana Krishi | ** | * | **** | *** | **** |
IFFCO Kisan Agriculture | **** | ***** | *** | *** | *** |
- ❖
- Success stories and the latest innovations: Crop Doctor and Arka Bagwani applications display modern agricultural technology applications along with farmers’ success stories;
- ❖
- Interaction facility with fellow farmers and agricultural professionals: riceXpert and Crop Doctor applications contain a section for users to share their queries and receive help from experts through text messages or call features. Slot booking options are available for face-to-face meetings, and field-level demonstrations are available as well;
- ❖
- Online hiring, buying, and selling platform: For instance, the FARMS application provides a platform for the hiring of labor, machinery, purchase of inputs, and selling of produce and planting material. However, the FARMS application warrants further clarity and improvement in buying products and rental procedures, as well as payment transactions without any hassle.
- Common restraints of farmer-accessible smartphone applications
- ❖
- Regional language: The majority of existing applications are only available in English and Hindi. The presence of agricultural knowledge and information in all the regional languages is essential for a country such as India. For example, riceXpert is a highly featured application that contains valuable information on pest and disease identification, nutrient and weed management, and expert advice. However, riceXpert has a lower number of downloads, probably due to the non-availability of applications in various Indian regional languages (Table 1). India is a multi-lingual country that has 23 official languages. Since the majority of farmers are not formally educated or only well-versed in their native language, it may be appropriate to widen the language base by including regional languages to enhance the utility of smartphone applications;
- ❖
- Inclusion of minor crops: Crop Doctor is designed to guide farmers through the package of practices to be followed during crop cultivation. However, the lists of crops given in the application are focused on commonly cultivated crops such as rice, wheat, maize, etc. The future application may include minor crops such as millet and pulses.;
- ❖
- Poor graphical user interface: The prevailing applications are mostly composed of text, with less pictorial representation. For example, Pashu Poshan is not well received by the farming community may be attributed to a lack of illustrative explanation. Pictorial representations play a key role in understanding pest and disease identification and nutrient deficiency diagnosis information. Further, the dissemination of information can be segmented into multiple sections, which could provide stakeholders with seamless use of the application;
- ❖
- Lacks regular updates: For applications such as Solapur Anar, a major focus is given to a package of practices, identification of pest and disease infestations, and other additional information related to pomegranate production. This type of application is well suited for referring to the standard recommendations and practices to follow in our daily farm operations, which mostly do not demand further updates. However, a few applications require regular and continuous updates to monitor the changes on a daily basis, such as market prices in riceXpert and daily weather information in Havaamaana Krishi;
- ❖
- Slow functionality: While accessing a few applications, the time taken to visualize the content is quite delayed, and there is some occasional failure to connect to the server as well. We observed slow functionality while using Pashu Poshan and Crop Insurance applications. Periodic monitoring is essential to keep the application fully functional.
4. Applications for Extension Officers
- ❖ Expert Advice: Farmers can make their queries either through voice or text messages, and the experts or extension officials will give their suggestions. For example, the KVK Mobile App helps farmers to know about the package of practices for crops, fisheries, horticulture, and livestock and has the option of farm-related queries from experts;
- ❖ Farm management and development: Extension officials can help farmers with farm-level issues and provide timely guidance. The Agriculture: Farm Extension Manager application keeps a record of extension professionals’ contacts working in the nearby locations that serve as a key database for the farming community;
- ❖ Technology transfer: Farmers use the Krishi Kisan application to find out about demonstrations in their neighborhoods. Extension-focused applications give users advance notice of KVK programs and field demonstrations hosted by various government agencies;
- ❖ Market information: The applications provide access to agro-commodity prices from various government portals, allowing farmers and other stakeholders, such as extension officials, to have a wealth of market information. For instance, IFFCO Kisan Agriculture provides farmers with instant access to the market price for their produce, market status, and prevailing trade prices along with quantities;
- ❖ Education: Applications connect the farmers with subject experts and other progressive farmers across the country to learn new farming techniques. Krishi Vigyan, KVK Mobile App, Krishi Kisan, and Mobile Farm Solutions (Q&A) are a few applications that assist in disseminating agriculture-related information to the farmers and connecting them with KVKs and educational institutions.
- ❖ Popularity: The applications with good features and ratings are not very popular among the farming community. Despite positive feedback and significant application features (Figure 3A), the Agriculture: Farm Extension Manager application has roughly 50,000 downloads due to its lack of popularity (Figure 3B). Thus, popularizing smartphone applications through advertisements will assist them in reaching the targeted stakeholders’ community;
- ❖ Accessibility: The application developers should consider network connectivity in rural areas. Most of the above-listed applications demand high-speed network connectivity for better accessibility. However, this is a major constraint in rural areas, which leads to limited usage. Krishi Kisan demands high network connectivity for its installation and updates;
- ❖ Language barrier: Most applications are developed in regional languages, limiting their wide adoption and popularity. For instance, Krishi Vigyan is only available in the Telugu language, and Pusa mKrishi is available only in English and Hindi, which is reflected in fewer downloads (Table 4).
5. Applications for Other Stakeholders
5.1. Government Officials (Excluding Extension Officials)
- ❖ The application should facilitate the implementation of projects at various levels. For instance, the vaccination schedule for livestock can be easily monitored through the smartphone application. The vaccination schedule can be spatially marked on a block/district/state map so the officials can plan the vaccination schedule;
- ❖ Post regular updates of new rules and regulations to the respective department’s website;
- ❖ A detailed explanation in the form of videos from an expert for a new scheme or new project. This will significantly reduce the training time;
- ❖ The application should give a complete package of knowledge of the respective fields. For example, the number of livestock and other relevant statistical data, along with financial and contingency plans, should be updated.
5.2. Researchers
5.3. A Smartphone Application for the Research Community is Expected to have the Following Features
6. Discussion
7. Conclusions
- ❖ An application can include audio and video instructions to assist unschooled farmers;
- ❖ Improving existing features: Applications can be made more efficient by incorporating real-time monitoring data from sensors, GIS (Geographical Information Systems), and remote sensing systems;
- ❖ Periodic updates: The application’s developers should always update the information about new agricultural technologies and innovations;
- ❖ Language preferences: To ensure that applications are not limited to a specific group of users, they should support a variety of languages. Applications should be made available in all of India’s regional languages;
- ❖ Bug fixes: Consistent follow-up on addressing the common issues such as login errors and server inaccessibility.
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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S. No. | Name of Application | Developed by (Organization) | Application Released Year | Available Languages | Application Downloading Link (All Applications Accessed on 8 July 2021) | Target Stakeholder |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | Agriculture: Farm Extension Manager | Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Kerala Agriculture University, Malappuram, Kerala | 2015 | English, Malayalam | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.femmob&hl=en_IN&gl=US | Farmers, Extension officials and Government officials. |
2. | IFFCO Kisan- Agriculture App | Indian Farmers Fertilizers Cooperative (IFFCO) Kisan, New Delhi | 2015 | English, Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Punjabi, Bengali, Odia, Marathi, Kannada, Telugu, Gujarati | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.IFFCOKisan&hl=en_IN&gl=US | Farmers and Extension officials |
3. | Farm Calculators | Dr. Vishwanath Koti, University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore, Karnataka | 2015 | English | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.easy.fertilizer.calculator&hl=en_IN&gl=US | Farmers |
4. | Pashu Poshan | National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), Anand, Gujarat | 2015 | English | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=coop.nddb.pashu_poshan | Farmers |
5. | Krishi Vigyan | Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Amadalavalasa, Acharya N. G. Ranga Agricultural University, Andhra Pradesh | 2016 | Telugu | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.krishi.krushivision&hl=en_IN&gl=US | Farmers and Extension officials |
6. | Crop Doctor | Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, National Informatics Center (NIC), Raipur, Chattisgarh | 2016 | English Hindi | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=igkv.igkvcropdoctor&hl=en_IN&gl=US | Farmers |
7. | riceXpert | National Rice Research Institute, Cuttack, Orissa | 2016 | English, Hindi, Odiya, Assamese | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.icar.riceXpert&hl=en_IN&gl=US | Farmers |
8. | Havaamaana- Krishi | All India Coordinated Research Project on Agrometeorology, Vijayapura Centre, University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, Karnataka | 2016 | English, Kannada | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.uasd.havaamana&hl=en_IN | Farmers |
9. | KVK Mobile App | Indian Council of Agricultural Research—Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute (ICAR-IASRI), New Delhi. | 2017 | English, Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Gujarati, Marathi, Telugu, Bengali | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.icar.iasri.kvkapp&hl=en_IN&gl=US | Farmers and Extension officials |
10. | Mobile Farm Solutions (Q&A) | National Informatics Center (NIC) e-Gov Mobile Applications, New Delhi. | 2017 | English | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.ionicframework.farmsolutions933452&hl=en&gl=US | Farmers and Extension officials |
11. | Solapur Anar | National Research Centre on Pomegranate, Solapur, Maharashtra | 2017 | English, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Kannada, Telugu | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.icarnrcp.solapuranar&hl=en_IN&gl=US | Farmers |
12. | Mannu (Mobile Application on Mannu) | Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management (IIITM), Kazhakkoottam, Kerala. | 2017 | English, Malayalam | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=in.ac.iiitmk.mannu | Farmers, Researchers, and Government officials |
13. | Uzhavan | Agriculture department, Tamil Nadu | 2018 | Tamil and English. | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=agri.tnagri&hl=en | Farmers and Government officials |
14. | Crop insurance | Department of Agriculture, Co-operation and Farmers’ Welfare (DAC & FW) New Delhi. | 2018 | Hindi, Marathi, English | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=in.farmguide.farmerapp.central&hl=en | Farmers and Government officials |
15. | Pusa mKrishi | Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), Research Station, Indore, Madhya Pradesh | 2019 | English, Hindi | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.tcs.mkrishi.cca&hl=en_IN&gl=US | Farmers and Extension officials |
16. | Krishi Kisan | MeitY, Government of India, New Delhi | 2019 | English | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.cropdemonstrate&hl=en_IN&gl=US | Farmers and Extension officials |
17. | SPARK OnMobile | National Informatics Centre (NIC) e-Gov Mobile Applications, New Delhi. | 2019 | English | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=in.gov.kerala.spark.onmobile&hl=en | Government officials |
18. | Haritha Drishti | Indian Institute Of Information Technology and Management (IIITM), Kazhakkoottam, Kerala | 2019 | English | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=in.ac.iiitmk.hk&hl=en | Government officials |
19. | PANNAI App (Pest-disease advance notification and need-based agriculture Information) | MS Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF), Chennai, Tamil Nadu | 2019 | Tamil and English | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=org.mssrf.farmerapp&hl | Farmers and Researchers |
20. | Crop Survey- Insurance Verification App | Director of e-Governance, Government of Karnataka, Karnataka. | 2019 | Kannada | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.csk.insurancecropverification.cropsurvey&hl=en_IN&gl=US | Government officials and Researchers |
21. | FARMS (Farm Machinery Solutions) | National Informatics Centre (NIC) e-Gov Mobile Applications, New Delhi | 2019 | Hindi, English, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Nepali, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu & Urdu | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=app.chcagrimachinery.com.chcagrimachinery&hl=en_IN&gl=US | Farmers |
22. | Meghdoot | India Meteorological Department (IMD)—Agricultural Meteorology Division (AAS), Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India | 2019 | English, Marathi, Bengali, Gujarati, Odia, Hindi, Malayalam, Assamese, Telugu, Tamil, Mizoram, Bangla, Punjabi | https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.aas.meghdoot | Farmers |
23. | Arka Bagwani | Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, Bangalore, Karnataka | 2019 | English, Kannada, Hindi | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.iihr.arkabagwani&hl=en | Farmers |
24. | AIMS (Agriculture Information Management System) | National Informatics Centre (NIC) e-Gov Mobile Applications, New Delhi. | 2020 | Malayalam and English. | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=in.nic.aims&hl=en | Farmers and Government officials |
25. | PM Kisan GoI | National Informatics Centre (NIC) e-Gov Mobile Applications, New Delhi. | 2020 | English, Hindi, Gujarati, Malayalam, Marathi, Tamil, Khasi, Garo. | https://play.google.com/store/applications/details?id=com.nic.project.pmkisan&hl=en | Farmers and Government officials |
Rating | Number of Downloads | Accessibility |
---|---|---|
* | <10,000 | English |
** | 10,000–100,000 | English and one regional language |
*** | 100,000–500,000 | English and two regional languages |
**** | 500,000–1,000,000 | English and three regional languages |
***** | >1,000,000 | English and more than three regional languages |
Name of the Application | Number of Downloads | Accessibility | User-Friendliness | Periodical Updates | User Ratings * |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Krishi Vigyan | ** | ** | *** | * | **** |
Agriculture: Farm Extension Manager | ** | ***** | ***** | ***** | ***** |
Pusa mKrishi | * | ** | *** | *** | *** |
IFFCO Kisan Agriculture | **** | ***** | *** | *** | *** |
Krishi Kisan | ** | ** | ** | *** | *** |
KVK Mobile App | ** | *** | *** | **** | **** |
Mobile Farm Solutions(Q&A) | * | * | * | * | *** |
Name of the Application | Number of Downloads | Accessibility | User-Friendliness | Periodical Updates | User Ratings * |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Spark | *** | ** | **** | *** | *** |
AIMS (Agriculture Information Management System) | ** | *** | *** | **** | *** |
Haritha Drishti | * | ** | **** | **** | **** |
Name of the Application | Number of Downloads | Accessibility | User Friendliness | Periodical Updates | User Ratings * |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
PANNAI App | * | *** | **** | *** | **** |
Crop Survey-Insurance verification App | ** | *** | *** | *** | *** |
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Sivakumar, S.; Bijoshkumar, G.; Rajasekharan, A.; Panicker, V.; Paramasivam, S.; Manivasagam, V.S.; Manalil, S. Evaluating the Expediency of Smartphone Applications for Indian Farmers and Other Stakeholders. AgriEngineering 2022, 4, 656-673. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriengineering4030042
Sivakumar S, Bijoshkumar G, Rajasekharan A, Panicker V, Paramasivam S, Manivasagam VS, Manalil S. Evaluating the Expediency of Smartphone Applications for Indian Farmers and Other Stakeholders. AgriEngineering. 2022; 4(3):656-673. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriengineering4030042
Chicago/Turabian StyleSivakumar, Soundharya, Gowryparvathy Bijoshkumar, Athulya Rajasekharan, Vaishnavi Panicker, Sivaraj Paramasivam, V. S. Manivasagam, and Sudheesh Manalil. 2022. "Evaluating the Expediency of Smartphone Applications for Indian Farmers and Other Stakeholders" AgriEngineering 4, no. 3: 656-673. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriengineering4030042