Agricultural practices are changing drastically with the incorporation of artificial intelligence (AI). These innovations have the potential to cause a sea change in farming by increasing production and solving issues of sustainability. More than 58% of rural households in India rely on agriculture as their main source of income, which contributes 18% to India's GDP. India's agricultural output is much lower compared to that of China, Brazil, and the United States. There is growing empirical evidence that adopting the most cutting-edge technologies, such as AI, improves farmers' economic situations and production. This chapter explores the use and awareness of ICT in facilitating the adoption of AI in agriculture and the barriers to accessing information sources. A questionnaire survey was administered to farmers to understand their experiences and perspectives on the use of ICT in agriculture and to facilitate the adoption of AI in agriculture.
Top1. Introduction
Artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionising various industries, and agriculture is no exception. With the world's population projected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050, the demand for food is expected to increase by at least 70%, which means that agriculture must become more efficient, productive, and sustainable. In India, agriculture accounts for approximately 18% of GDP and employs 58% of the total labour force. Agriculture is an important sector in most developing countries, with the majority of the rural population relying on it (Stienen, Bruinsma, and Neuman 2007). Green et al. (2005) concluded that agriculture has been shown to significantly contribute to economic growth, food security, poverty alleviation, livelihoods, food security, and ecological sustainability. India is the largest producer of pulses, rice, wheat, and spices in the world. However, in terms of marketing facilities and technological know-how, Indian agriculture continues to face challenges such as a lack of business sector harmonisation and integration, as well as farmers' provision of trustworthy and accessible relevant information, cold storage facilities, and technical know-how (Shah, 2015).
The adoption of AI in agriculture requires the use of information and communications technology (ICT). ICT provides a framework for integrating various technologies and systems, making it possible to develop and deploy AI solutions that can help farmers optimize production processes, reduce costs, and increase yields. As such, the adoption of AI in agriculture requires continued investment in ICT infrastructure, connectivity, and automation systems. In recent years, the farming sector has become increasingly information-dependent, requiring a wide range of technical and scientific data for the farming community to make informed decisions (Cash, 2001). However, large-scale knowledge asymmetry exists in practically all levels of the agricultural supply chain in underdeveloped countries, which leads to victimization of the farming community and redundancies across the chain (Eggleston, Jensen & Zeckhauser, 2001; Ravallion, 1986). This is one of the most serious issues confronting farmers in emerging nations, including India (Gollakota, 2008). Information and awareness are critical variables in speeding agricultural growth by implementing suitable production planning, adopting improved farming techniques, and implementing efficient post-harvest management and marketing (Bertolini, 2004; Kizilaslan, 2006). India's agriculture systems are immensely complex and dispersed, the demand for information and expertise varies greatly throughout various stages of the supply chain (Adhiguru & Mruthyunjaya, 2004; Rao, 2006). Other aspects, such as land, labour, money, and management skill, can be enhanced by relevant, trustworthy, and usable information provided by extension services, research institutes, and other agricultural organisations to assist farmers in making better decisions. Farmers become more aware of agricultural technology adoption as a result of agricultural information. As a result, it is critical for every country, particularly emerging countries, to have a solid agricultural information system that supports agricultural growth.
In the present era, effective agricultural growth necessitates access to and utilisation of ICT tools that underpin modern information systems. ICTs simply make it easier to create, manage, store, retrieve, and disseminate any relevant data, knowledge, and information that has already been processed and altered (Bachelor 2002; Chapman and Slay maker 2002; Rao 2007; Heeks 2002). ICT in agriculture is a new field in India that focuses on improving agriculture and rural development. ICT can give farmers with reliable information, resulting in higher agricultural output.