Cisco inks MoU with KSITM to develop smart, connected farming ecosystem

Cisco has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Kerala State IT Mission (KSITM) to bring the benefits of digital technology and data science to the farming communities in Kerala.

The first phase of this initiative will be rolled out in 15 Panchayats across Kannur district. Pursuant to the MOU, Cisco will build an Agri-Digital Infrastructure (ADI) Platform and set up Village Knowledge Centers (VKCs) for knowledge delivery and provide access to e-learning and advisory services to the farming and fishing communities in Kannur.

The comprehensive ADI Platform will provide access to a data store with complete farming data of paddy and prawns farms in the region along with land and farmer profile databases. This data store will run Cisco’s robust analytics and compute engines to extract insights on crop yields, weather patterns, plant disease patterns, soil quality, moisture content, forecasting and other data, and make it available to farmers and government officials through the VKC’s.

This Cisco ADI Platform will be supplemented by a custom-built Smart Agricultural Platform that uses IoT sensors, Non-IoT databases, Satellite/UAV Images to gather and relay real-time intelligence on soil content, moisture, weather conditions and other parameters. This platform will become a centralized knowledge hub which will provide data-based recommendations and insights to improve agriculture planning, reduce the risk of crop mortality and overall operational costs.

Through VKC’s, farmers can also access essential information on government policy updates, crop advisory services, market trends, rates and best practice videos. Farmers will also gain accessibility to government provisioned financing on a Content Management System through a mobile application and web portal. Apart from KSITM, the program will be supported by MIZONE (Malabar Innovation Zone), Government College of Engineering, Kannur, Department of Agriculture, Department of Fisheries and Local Panchayat with FPO’s.

Harish Krishnan, Managing Director, Public Affairs & Strategic Engagements, Cisco, says, “The impact of technology can be transformational for those who need it most, elevating standards of living and foster economic development. At Cisco, we believe digitization is a great equalizer and can play a pivotal role by providing a cost-effective way to deliver information services to a large, dispersed population. Kerala today is one of the leading adopters of digital technology for agriculture, and we are proud to collaborate with them on this initiative.”

Shri Sivasankar M, IAS, OSD to CM & Principal Secy -IT, Government of Kerala, says,“The Kerala Government’s vision is to turn the State into a knowledge society with sustainable economic growth, technological advancements and better quality of life for all. I envision digitally empowering every farmer of the State eventually by strengthening the ecosystem in agriculture, aquaculture, and skill development. We are happy to partner with Cisco for this transformative project and catapult the State to the forefront of the digital revolution.”