CIOInsider India Magazine

Agriculture continues to serve a major part in generating revenue and serving as a food source for numerous people worldwide. Over the years, the industry has experienced several changes and improvements in various farming methods and practices. Using natural resources and methods will increase agricultural production and cut costs. Today, for instance, different tractors and machinery are employed, less insecticide is consumed, and biofertilizers are used. The agricultural industry has found technology to be incredibly useful throughout time.

Technology in Agriculture
Technology can be applied to agriculture in a variety of ways, including the use of fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, and improved seeds. Farmers are now able to plant crops where it was previously thought they couldn't, only because of agricultural biotechnology. For instance, genetic engineering allows for the introduction of certain sequences into the genome of various plants or animals. Such engineering helps crops grow more resistant to pests and droughts. Farmers can electrify any process using technology to boost output and efficiency. So, using modern technology in agriculture has several benefits.

The COVID-19 epidemic has exacerbated the problems connected to a lack of food security and rising levels of poverty by having a substantial impact on the supply and demand elements in the agricultural value chain. Consumer access to and availability of food has been hampered by labor shortages at businesses, disruptions in the food supply chain, and input supply chains. In some cases, these factors have also contributed to local shortages and price increases. This is in addition to the 135 million people already in grave danger of going hungry before the crisis, the U.N. The WorldFood Program has warned that an additional 130 million people could experience acute food insecurity by the end of 2020 due to income and remittance losses. On the supply side, the pandemic is strengthening consumers' shifting preferences for safety and convenience, increasing their reliance on packaged goods and e-commerce for more direct sourcing and delivery of food.

Krish-e Smart Kit
Krish-e Mahindra’s AgTech business has launched the Krish-e Smart Kit (KSK). An aftermarket device, the Krish-e Smart Kit is the first-of-its-kind smart device. It provides equipment owners with detailed insights into their tractors and farm equipment through GPS-enabled time tracking and remote monitoring of various parameters from the comfort of a smartphone. A cutting-edge offering, the Krish-e Smart Kit is developed by Carnot Technologies, an Ag-Tech start-up, founded in 2015 by four alumni from IIT Bombay in their mid-20s, who, as part of the IITB racing team, developed solutions to monitor the performance of race vehicles from the pit. Today Carnot Technologies is engaged in manufacturing and retailing products and services related to internet-connected devices for monitoring the performance of vehicles and equipment, with M&M Ltd. having acquired a significant stake in the company.

With the help of the Krish-e Smart Kit, equipment owners, and rental business owners may control maintenance expenses, increase fleet performance, and prevent unauthorized use of their tractors while minimizing downtime. The Smart Kit also has a sophisticated trip replay feature for monitoring trolleys and commercial transportation activity.

How does this Work?
The kit is brand-neutral and may be mounted on any tractor, including new and used models, as well as farm machinery, including harvesters, rice transplanters, and self-propelled sprayers. The kit comes with the Krish-e Rental Partner App, which can be found on the Google Play Store. The software allows users access to an inventory of expensive farm equipment on a pay-per-use basis in addition to tracking and monitoring.

Ramesh Ramachandran – Senior Vice President and Head of Krish-e – Farm Equipment Sector, M&M Ltd., says, “The Krish-e Smart Kit, a first-of-its-kind aftermarket Internet of Things (IoT) solution, offers farmers and companies the most innovative, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly option to connect to and keep an eye on their farm machinery wherever they are. We will formally introduce the Krish-e Smart Kit when it is in its scale-up phase and has more than 25,000 active users. As we work on digitizing every acre and kilometer of rental activity, we also invite institutions, FPOs, governmental organizations, and start-ups in the state to join us on this linked journey. Future goals include being India's top provider of connection for agriculture equipment.”

Pushkar Limaye – CTO, Carnot Technologies says, “We developed a simple plug-and-play gadget for tractors to assist in increasing their efficiency using IoT, with real-time updates on smartphones, to create world-class products in India. And today, we are happy to see that over 25,000 kits have already assisted farmers in digitizing their operations and creating tangible value locally. And today, with the formal introduction of the Krish-e Smart Kit, we hope to digitize Indian farming with an India-based solution and expand our audience of tractor owners and rental business owners. This is what Mahindra and I are attempting to do.”

Thus far, Krish-e has over 25,000 active subscribers, 85 percent DAU (daily active users), spending about 55 minutes per day on the app in season, with 70 percent subscriptions post-expiry of the free subscription period. Individual farmers, institutional buyers, FPOs, and start-ups can purchase the Krish-e Smart Kit from the nearest Krish-e center, the Krish-e website, or Krish-e Sahayaks by calling 1800-266-1555 at an early bird price of Rs. 4,995 including taxes and a six-month subscription package for the aforementioned services.

Krish-e, a new business vertical from Mahindra, was introduced in 2020. To sustainably reduce the revenue potential of farmers and other value chain participants, Krish-e offers technology-driven services. Displaying the slogan Expert Takneek. With 150 Krish-e centers and app-based touch points, Naye Upay. Parinaam Dikhaye's Krish-e services currently concentrate on the fields of Farm Advice, Equipment Renting, and Used Equipment.