HYDERABAD, 05 August 2021: Naviz Analytics, a leading US-based Data Science firm, recently announced the official launch of Samhitha Crop Care Clinics, a unique, precision farming advisory aimed at increasing the bottom line of Indian farmers.
Samhitha leverages drones, soil telemetry, weather stations, etc., along with agriculture experts on the ground who communicate the insights to farmers.
Under its pilot run in the Naviz Analytics, Telangana region, Samhitha focused exclusively on citrus growers who faced low crop yield and lifespan.
As per some reports, the average citrus crop yield in India is 5 tons against 15 tons per acre in the western nations, while lifespan averages about 12 years, against 45 years in the west.
Spanning across 4 lakh trees and over 3500 acres, Samhitha’s precision farming advisory enabled farmers to clock over 30% higher yield year over year and identified over 52 on-field defects. And this happened after input cost reduction, driven by smart irrigation and continuous crop monitoring.
At Samhitha’s launch event, Energy Minister, G Jagdish Reddy urged farmers to switch over to new cultivation methods from traditional practices and use modern technologies to achieve higher crop yields.
Dr. G Syamasundar Reddy, CEO, Samhitha, an ex-professor, IIIT Hyderabad, and Senior Scientist at Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), stated, “In Andhra Pradesh, two citrus fruits - sweet orange and acid lime - are cultivated extensively, but growers face lower crop yield. They end up using fertilisers and herbicides which increases short-term yield, but significantly reduces the crop life.”
“With Samhitha, we have empowered citrus growers financially, while ensuring optimum crop yield, soil health, and minimum wastage of natural resources”, he added.
According to Kalyan Enjamoori, CTO, Samhitha, “Samhitha collects and analyses data for parameters like soil, rainfall, air, leaf wetness, irrigation water quality, etc., wherein drones monitor the crops continuously for any stress, and can detect it instantaneously with the help of customised AI and machine learning algorithms.”
Commenting on the inspiration behind Samhitha, Jagan Chitiprolu, a Serial Entrepreneur and Harvard Business School alumnus, added, “In India, agriculture supports the livelihood of over 60% of the population, where 82?rmers are small or marginalized, and contributes to over 18% GDP. They have limited access to high-end technology, crop experts, and markets."
"Samhitha was conceptualised with a singular goal - offer precision farming advisory to farmers. We empower the agriculture experts on the ground with insights, who in turn, guide the farmers - this guidance usually starts from seed selection to planting, irrigation to fertilisers, and harvesting to soil quality,” he added.
Post this pilot launch, Samhitha plans to accelerate its precision farming advisory services across the nation, empowering the farmers and the economy in a sustainable manner.
