Amid the ongoing AI Summit in New Delhi, Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare and Rural Development Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan today launched Phase 1 of the Artificial Intelligence based scheme Bharat VISTAAR in Jaipur, Rajasthan. Rajasthan Chief Minister Shri Bhajanlal Sharma was present at the inauguration. On the occasion, Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan also unveiled a farmer centric AI Hackathon and the Agri Kosh AI Strategy Roadmap, signalling a technology driven push to strengthen Indian agriculture.
Describing the initiative as a transformative step, Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the central government’s objective is to enhance the production capacities of farmers through modern technology. The Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare has developed Bharat VISTAAR as an AI powered digital public infrastructure platform designed to provide farmers with comprehensive agricultural information through smartphones as well as ordinary mobile phones.
Under the scheme, farmers can dial the helpline number 155261, describe their problems and receive immediate solutions. The same number can also be used to obtain real time mandi prices from markets across the country. During the launch event, in the presence of farmers, the AI assistant Bharati demonstrated its capability by providing satisfactory and precise responses to agriculture related queries. The live interaction showcased the platform’s multilingual conversational advisory system, currently available in Hindi and English, with plans to expand to 11 languages in the near future.
Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan said Bharat VISTAAR ensures that farmers can ask questions in their local language and receive clear and direct answers. He announced that a Farmer Identity Card is being created under the scheme, which will store comprehensive information about farmers and link them to various government schemes. At present, schemes such as the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana and Soil Health Card have been integrated. In the coming phase, all major agricultural schemes will be connected to the platform, and preparations are underway to integrate the entire agricultural ecosystem with Bharat VISTAAR.
The Minister also used the occasion to target the opposition. He posed five questions to Leader of Opposition Shri Rahul Gandhi regarding alleged irregularities in agricultural matters during previous UPA governments. He questioned why the Swaminathan Committee’s recommendation to fix Minimum Support Price by adding 50 per cent profit over cost was opposed through an affidavit in court during the UPA period. He stated that Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi implemented the cost plus 50 per cent MSP formula in the interest of farmers. Referring to events of 2009-10, Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan alleged that while poor citizens were compelled to buy flour at 20 rupees per kilogram, the same flour was exported at 12.51 rupees per kilogram despite domestic shortages.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Shri Bhajanlal Sharma said that achieving the vision of Viksit Bharat by 2047 requires Viksit Kisan. He described Bharat VISTAAR as a matter of pride for the nation and said Artificial Intelligence in agriculture would bring prosperity and self reliance to farmers. He emphasised that farmers will now have instant access to information on soil testing, seeds, fertilisers and water management through their mobile phones.
Shri Devesh Chaturvedi, Secretary, Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, said Bharat VISTAAR aims to provide all agricultural information on a single unified platform instead of scattered portals. He reiterated that services have initially been launched in Hindi and English, and additional regional languages will soon be added.
Dr M. L. Jat, Director General of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research ICAR, termed the launch historic and fully farmer centric, stating that Bharat VISTAAR integrates Indian agriculture into a single digital framework.
The programme was attended by Shri Bhagirath Choudhary, Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Smt. Manju Sharma, Member of Parliament from Jaipur, Shri V. Srinivas, Chief Secretary of Rajasthan Government, and Smt. Manju Rajpal, Principal Secretary to the Government of Rajasthan. Agriculture ministers from various states participated through video conferencing.
Bharat VISTAAR integrates resources from AgriStack, ICAR, the Indian Meteorological Department IMD, mandi price databases and state level agricultural systems into one AI enabled advisory system. The platform provides information on loans, insurance, government schemes, weather forecasts and crop advisories, with the objective of increasing productivity and reducing risk for farmers.
The launch in Jaipur, timed with the AI Summit in Delhi, underscores the government’s emphasis on leveraging Artificial Intelligence to modernise agriculture and deliver technology driven empowerment directly to farmers across the country.
