Source:Wikipedia.

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IIT Madras
Department: Civil Engineering
Course: CE1010
Faculty Advisor: Dr. Venkatraman Srinivasan
Project Title: SMART AGRICULTURE- WHAT IS IT?
ITS BENEFITS AND FIVE EXAMPLES TO SHOW HOW
IT IS USEFUL
Group No.: 4
Members: Dipanshu Panda(CE22B004)
Tana Huto(CE22B030)
Garvit Khaitan(CE22B056)
Om Yadav(CE22B082)
Sri Devika Saranya(CE22B108)
 OVERVIEW
Let us look at a summary of our project before diving into the details, beginning with the
most important question, why smart agriculture in the first place?
Agriculture has been an age-old practice and also the primary source of food. Although this
sector is respected and valued, there have been little to no advancements to revolutionize this
sector. The conventional techniques will not be able to meet the increasing demands caused
due to modern-day problems like increasing population, increasing average income, and
effects of globalization and would also fail in fighting scarcities of cultivable land and water.
This is becoming more and more evident already and if this continues, the whole system
would collapse.
The only solution to all of these problems is smart agricultural practices that are designed
according to the modern-day demands and scarcities of resources. It can be perceived as a
concept of management that focuses on providing adequate infrastructure to integrate
technologies like big data, cloud, and the internet of things into agriculture thus, introducing
aspects like tracking, monitoring, and automating. This allows the farmers to optimally utilize
scarce resources like soil and water and ensure their economic sustainability.
There are several such practices including hydroponics, modern irrigation methods, crop
monitoring, etc. which are the need of the hour in the agricultural sector. Our project deals
with explaining the benefits of smart agriculture, what it means for even small landholders,
and five case studies revolving around its various aspects and advantages.

OBJECTIVES
 To highlight the importance of smart agriculture in the present-day scenario.
 To contrast the advantages of smart agriculture over conventional techniques
currently in use.
 To show how smart farming can help our farmers and improve the agricultural output
of our country which still relies heavily upon the agricultural sector to feed its large
population.
 To promote smart agriculture as a viable option for improving food security and
increasing the yield from agriculture.
 To show that smart agriculture promotes sustainable development by conserving
scarce natural resources.

INTRODUCTION
SMART AGRICULTURE
WHAT IS IT?
The term “Smart Agriculture” refers to the
integration of technology and sustainable
practices in agriculture that not only increases
the yield of the produce but also streamlines
the process and reduces the impact on the
environment. The goal here is also to reduce
human exertions used and operational costs of
human labor by making most of the processes
automated or replacing them with newer and more efficient practices.

Let us look at some examples of the types of technologies and practices used in smart
agriculture-:
 Precise irrigation practices and soil type assessment
 Real-time climate monitoring, storm forecasting, and subsequent risk alerts.
 Sensing technologies used for management of soil, temperature, and crop monitoring
providing real-time data
 Region structures such as GPS and important satellite data.
 It provides a net of factors, which is a system for connectivity between sensors and
machines, is the relationship between all of these technologies. In this way, farmers
can screen their farms and take strategic decisions remotely from their smartphones
without being physically present in the fields.
There are many more such technologies and practices that are a part of smart agriculture
which we shall discuss further but before that, we must understand that the benefits of all
these technologies are manifold. We will get to know why smart agriculture is so necessary
and possibly, the need of the hour only when we realize its full potential. Hence, in our next
section, we discuss the benefits of smart agriculture and its various aspects.

METHODOLOGY
 We began the project by firstly, distributing the work amongst all our members,
taking care of the involvement of each member in the project.
 The information used in the overview and the benefits of smart agriculture portion
were collected by Saranya. While the information for the introduction and the five
examples we are presenting were collected by Tana Huto. They both collected
information from various blogs and articles on the internet, references of which have
been listed.
 The images used in the report were collected by Garvit and he also contributed to
writing the five examples in this report.
 The final report was written, designed, and edited by Dipanshu, making sure that the
report is visually appealing and engages its audience while also imparting information
about the topic. He rectified all the writing mistakes and submitted the final copy.
  The PowerPoint presentation was made by Om, drawing important sub-topics and
points from this report. He made sure that the presentation is crisp, and visually
appealing and gives a brief but significant summary of this report.

DISCUSSION
BENEFITS OF SMART AGRICULTURE-:
Let us now look at how these amazing ideas help farmers in making their work easier. Here
are some of the benefits Smart agricultural practices and methods can have-:
1. Increased production and yield of crops-: One of the practices of smart agriculture is
optimized crop treatment which includes accurate planting of the crops, precise irrigation,
pesticide application, and harvesting. These practices directly impact the yield and production
rate of crops.
2. Reduced Environmental Footprint-: Smart agriculture is only possible when we can reduce
the environmental impact and at the same time make the process easier and yield better
results. Hence, the primary area of focus is the conservation of water and land resources. It
allows for water to be used just when and where it is required courtesy of weather forecasts
and soil moisture sensors and the increased production per unit land directly reduces the
impact on the environment.
3. Real-Time Data and Production Insight-: The most important aspect of smart agriculture is
the integration of technology and modeling. Farmers can remotely visualize production
levels, soil moisture, sunlight intensity, and also monitor the quality of their crops in real-
time which fastens the decision-making process.
4. Lowered Operation Costs-: The integration of technology reduces the costs of operations
that go into human labor and other resources to perform processes like planting and
harvesting by making them largely automated. This, in turn, reduces the chances of human
error and optimizes resource consumption.
5. Improved Livestock Farming-: Another important aspect of farming is the management of
livestock. Animal reproduction and health events can be detected sooner by sensors and
technology. Additionally, geofencing position tracking helps enhance the management and
monitoring of animals.
6. Equipment Monitoring-: Farming equipments, if not maintained can slow down the entire
process and lead to the wastage of natural resources. Hence, equipments must be monitored
and maintained according to production rates, labor effectiveness, and failure prediction.
7. Clearing out the fuss in the supply chain-: Conventionally, supply chains have been
characterized by a power imbalance. The producers always have the least information about
how their product performance relative to market requirements. Smart farming provides a
vital link between all players in the supply chain by enabling the efficient and equitable flow
of information facilitating better decision-making. This is extremely beneficial for the
farmers because if they receive timely feedback about their product they can change their
production pattern to cater to the market requirements, thereby, increasing the value of the
product.
8. Ensuring quality of the food-: By distributing data along the supply chain, smart farming
also helps verification efforts allowing production claims to be verified. These concerns like
where the crops were grown, how were the animals treated on the farm and the overall safety
of the food(ensuring there are no toxic chemicals or pesticides present), whether sustainable
practices were followed. This helps in eradicating the risk of biomagnification and also helps
protect the environment.

Now, that we have discussed so much about the benefits of smart agriculture, one must
wonder that all these practices require capital investment and knowledge which many of our
farmers are devoid of. Will they even get access to all such facilities? Is smart agriculture
only for rich farmers? This brings us to our next section.

SMART AGRICULTURE FOR SMALL LANDHOLDERS-:

It is undeniable that solutions like robots, sensors, various types of modeling, and connected
machinery are very expensive. So, it is a genuine possibility that the majority of the Indian
farmers, who are small landholders working with basic tools, cannot afford this technology.
So, what does smart farming mean for them-:
 Accessing smart farming solutions comes at a price but that price also depends upon
the scope and scale of the technology being utilized. If we ignore sensing technology
and robots, data is the primary aspect that drives this technology. Data made
accessible through cost-effective mobile apps prove to be very useful for small
landholders.
 These apps can be of various uses. For example, weather forecasting apps can alert
farmers of any severe events like floods or storms giving them enough time to move
their cattle to high grounds or protect their crops.
 Another use case can be biosecurity risk alerts. Notifications of potential disease
outbreaks to farmers can help them take necessary steps to protect their livestock from
 getting infected. Some apps can also help farmers find the best possible deal for their
products in the market by providing better accessibility to buyers.
 Whether it be weather forecasting, product marketing, or responding to a disease,
these are all examples of smart farming solutions that can be easily used by small
landholders. Furthermore, small farmers can access smart farming via collective
investment in technology solutions, with government support. Suppliers of these
solutions should also take the initiative to make this technology more accessible
through pay-as-you-go arrangements or equipment rentals. Hence, it is wrong to limit
the idea of smart agriculture only to rich farmers.
After so much information about smart agriculture and its benefits, let us look at five
examples where smart agriculture has completely transformed the existing methodology.

EXAMPLES-:
1. Hydroponic farming-: Have you ever thought about agriculture without soil?
Although it sounds impossible, this new technique has proved to be a game-changer.
Hydroponics is a subset of hydroculture (the method of growing plants in an alternative
medium other than soil). Hydroponics uses water-based mineral nutrient solutions in aqueous
solvents instead of soil.

Although, the prospect sounds exciting, is it more profitable than the conventional methods
used by farmers? The answer is a resounding yes. With proper management and precautions,
hydroponic farming is highly profitable because it gives a high yield in a very small area in
any season or weather conditions.
Here are some more advantages of hydroponics over traditional soil-based farming:
 No soil, no turmoil: The replacement of soil as the growing medium means that the
farmers no longer need to worry about the quality of the soil for the plantation. This
also helps in saving soil, leaving it undisturbed yet fertile and protecting it from
subsequent degradation.
 No weeds: This one is pretty obvious as weeds cannot grow on water. Weeds feed on
the nutrients that are meant for the crops and this results in stunted growth and less
nutritive value in the crops but this is completely taken care of in hydroponics.
 Fewer pesticides: In hydroponics, there is no struggle for space. Each plant gets its
spot to grow and the entire process takes place in a controlled environment so the
number of biological threats to the plant is also reduced a great deal.
 Nutrient efficiency: It is one of the best features of hydroponics. The nutrients are
supplied directly to the plants through the aqueous solvents that are used as the
 growing medium, just like soil, but to a precise and required amount. This ensures
that there is no wastage of nutrients.

2. Monitoring of climate conditions-: Climate play a very important role in

agriculture because it governs the overall cycle of a crop from planting to the harvesting
stage. Therefore, weather stations that incorporate multiple smart farming sensors are the
most widely used smart agriculture technology. They are spread out around the area and
gather various environmental data before sending it to the cloud. The measurements
offered can be used to map the climate conditions, select suitable crops, and implement
the necessary improvements (i.e. precision farming). AllMETEO, Smart Elements, and
Pycno are a few instances of these agricultural IoT devices.

3. Agricultural drones-: The use of agricultural drones in smart farming is possibly one
of the most promising agritech developments because it significantly automates the process.
Drones, also referred to as unmanned aerial vehicles or UAVs, are more effective in
gathering agricultural data than satellites and aircraft. Aside from surveillance, drones may
also carry out a wide range of operations that formerly needed human labor, such as planting
crops, eradicating pests and diseases, spraying for agriculture, monitoring crops, etc.

4. Cattle monitoring and management-: IoT agricultural sensors are available that
can be fitted to farm animals in order to track performance and check health, just like crop
monitoring. Data on the condition, location, and well-being of livestock are gathered with the
aid of livestock tracking and monitoring.

For instance, these sensors can detect ill animals, allowing farmers to remove them from the
herd and prevent infection. Farmers can cut labor costs by using drones to track animals in
real-time. This operates similarly to pet care IoT devices. For instance, SCR by Allflex and
Cowlar makes use of smart agricultural sensors (collar tags) to provide insights about the
temperature, health, activity, and nutrition of each cow as well as information about the herd
as a whole.

5. Modern Irrigation -: Irrigation is one of the most important practices in agriculture.

The right amount of water given at the right time to the crops ensures a much better yield and
also helps in conserving water. Hence, it is very important to revolutionize this process using
smarter techniques such as-:
(A) Sprinkler System: In this process, water droplets are sprayed or sprinkled like raindrops
over the landscape through rotating nozzles connected to pipelines. The pipelines are
connected perpendicular to a main pipeline laid in the field. The advantages include:
 It is very useful for sandy soil and uneven land
 It protects the crops from extreme weather conditions like frost or high
temperature
 Fertilizers and insecticides can be applied through a sprinkler system
 It helps in soil conservation as well

(B) Drip Irrigation: In this method, water flows through narrow pipes laid on the fields and
drips through small holes (known as emitters) directly at the plant roots. Roots absorb the
water and nourish the plant. There is little to no water wasted in this method, as very less
water is lost to evaporation, runoff, and wind.
 It optimizes soil moisture and also saves water
 It provides direct hydration of plant roots which is necessary for plant health
 It inhibits weed growth because the water is applied directly to plant roots and
not spread around the field.
 Pathogenic growth like bacteria is also limited since the area near the plants
remains dry
 CONCLUSION
With this project, we have made an honest attempt to showcase the advantages of smart
agriculture over existing conventional methods. To conclude, we would like to reiterate that
smart agriculture is the need of the hour. It is high time for us to be accepting of these
practices in agriculture to not only help the farmers but also to save and protect the
environment.

REFERENCES
Information-:
 https://www.c2m.net/blog/10-benefits-of-a-smart-agriculture-solution
 https://www.iso.org/news/ref2799.html#:~:text=Smart%20farming%20helps
%20farmers%20to,environmentally%20and%20economically%20sustainable
%20manner.
 https://www.uaftimes.com/what-are-the-advantages-and-disadvantages-of-
technology-in-agriculture/
 https://www.trees.com/gardening-and-landscaping/advantages-disadvantages-of-
hydroponics
 https://energypedia.info/wiki/Drip_Irrigation#:~:text=Advantages%3A%20Low
%20costs%20and%20operating,compared%20to%20other%20emitter%20types
 https://easternpeak.com/blog/iot-in-agriculture-technology-use-cases-for-smart-
farming-and-challenges-to-consider/

Images-:
 teks.co.in
 dreamstime.com
 verticalroots.com
 greenblockfarms.com
 freepik.com