Narendrapur (West Bengal) [India], September 21 (ANI/NewsVoir): CropLife India, an association of 16 R&D driven crop science companies, and the leading voice of the plant science industry in India, pioneered an awareness cum training program on "Application of Kisan Drone Technology in Agriculture" throughout the State of West Bengal. The training and demonstration program was organized jointly with the Agriculture Department and State Agricultural Management and Extension Training Institute (SAMETI) Government of West Bengal.

The two days training and demonstration program was held in Narendrapur on September 15 and 16, 2022; Swami Sarvalokananda, Secretary, Ramakrishna Mission Ashrama, Narendrapur; Hrishikesh Mudi, Special Secretary, Department of Agriculture, Govt of West Bengal; being the Chief Guest. Dr S. Chattaraj, Sr. Scientist, NBSSLUP, ICAR, Kolkata, Dr Dibyendu Dutta, Former Scientist - Head & GM, RRSC-East, ISRO, Kolkata, Dr Damodhara Rao Mailapalli, Associate Professor, IIT, Kharagpur and Dr Manas Ghosh, Principal ATC & Director SAMETI addressed the gathering. Apart from them, present on the occasion were officials of SAMETI, Scientists of Krishi Vigyan Kendra and Extension Officers, Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), member companies and other officials.

Hrishikesh Mudi, Special Secretary, Department of Agriculture, Government of West Bengal said, "With the introduction of Kisan Drones, they are becoming the Indian farmer's new best friend which would help in saving time, cost and increasing yield and productivity. The Centre and State Governments are taking the all the necessary steps to facilitate the usage of drones."

During the program, CropLife India released its Drone Poster for quick reference & further dissemination.

CropLife India believes that with all the favourable policy support coming in from the Government, the conducive ecosystem needs to be nurtured in order to ensure faster adoption of drones in Indian Agriculture. All the ecosystem stakeholders - Government, Agricultural Universities, Research Institutions, Corporates, Industry Associations, Drone Training Institutes, Drones manufacturers, Drone service providers, FPOs, farmers, Agri & Rural Entrepreneurs, etc. will have to work in tandem towards achieving this. Many agrochemical companies are exploring avenues for improving farmers' stickiness towards their products. Hence, going forward, the demand for customised Drone-as-a-service models (Agricultural applications and Crop protection) is bound to rise by leaps and bounds.

CropLife India remains committed to advancing agriculture in India and to meaningfully engage with the Government and farming community; to enable Safe & Secure Food Supply. CropLife India assures of our full support in the interest of progressive and pragmatic initiatives of the Government for the benefit of Farmers and Sustainable Agriculture in India.

CropLife India is committed to advancing sustainable agriculture and it is an association of 16 leading domestic and international R&D driven member companies in crop protection and the leading voice of the plant science industry in India. We jointly represent ~ 70 per cent of the market and are responsible for 95 per cent of the molecules introduced in the country. Our member companies have annual global R&D spend of 6 billion USD and are firmly committed to engaging with the farming community to enable Safe, Secure Food Supply.

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