In a significant leap towards enhancing the efficiency and outreach of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) Scheme, the Union Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India, has introduced an AI Chatbot. This groundbreaking launch seeks to revolutionize the agricultural landscape by providing farmers with prompt, precise, and accessible responses to their inquiries.
The unveiling of the AI Chatbot was presided over by Kailash Choudhary, Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. He emphasized that this initiative aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of ushering in positive change in the lives of farmers and improving governance through technology.
Choudhary underscored the Chatbot’s role in disseminating scheme information and resolving grievances. He further called for its expansion to include services related to weather updates, soil conditions, and bank payments. The minister commended the Ministry’s swift adoption of technology, noting that it will alleviate the workload of agriculture officials at both the central and state levels.
The launch ceremony, held virtually, saw dignitaries from the Government of India and State Governments come together to celebrate this milestone in the agricultural sector. The successful introduction of the AI Chatbot for the PM-KISAN scheme reaffirms the government’s dedication to harnessing technological advancements for the welfare of farmers.
Manoj Ahuja, Secretary, Department of Agriculture & Family Welfare, announced that the AI Chatbot would soon be extended to other major schemes of the Ministry in the coming months. Pramod Mehreda, Additional Secretary, Department of Agriculture & Family Welfare, presented an in-depth overview of the Chatbot’s features and benefits for farmers.
The AI Chatbot serves as a comprehensive guide for beneficiaries, offering timely and precise responses to their scheme-related queries. Notably, it is the first AI Chatbot integrated with a major flagship scheme of the Union government. Its development and refinement were made possible through the support of the EKstep foundation and Bhashini.
The introduction of the AI Chatbot into the PM-KISAN grievance management system aims to empower farmers with a user-friendly and easily accessible platform. In its initial phase, the Chatbot will assist farmers in obtaining information related to their application status, payment details, ineligibility status, and other scheme-related updates.
Accessible via the PM KISAN mobile app, the AI Chatbot is integrated with Bhashini, offering multilingual support to cater to the linguistic and regional diversity of PM KISAN beneficiaries. This integration of advanced technology promises to enhance transparency and empower farmers to make informed decisions.
Currently available in English, Hindi, Bengali, Odia, and Tamil, the Chatbot is set to expand its language support to cover all 22 languages of the country in the near future. This broadened accessibility will further strengthen the PM-KISAN scheme’s reach and impact, ensuring that every eligible farmer can benefit from this revolutionary technological advancement.
The launch of the AI Chatbot for the PM-KISAN Scheme represents a pivotal moment in India’s agriculture sector. It symbolizes the government’s unwavering commitment to leveraging technology for the betterment of farmers’ lives, fostering transparency, and ensuring the effective implementation of welfare schemes. With its ever-expanding language support, this innovative Chatbot promises to be a vital tool in the hands of Indian farmers, supporting them in their journey towards prosperity.
The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) is a central sector scheme launched in February 2019 to support the financial needs of land-holding farmers in India. The scheme offers an annual financial benefit of Rs 6,000/- in three equal instalments to eligible farmers’ families through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) mode. Since its inception, over Rs. 2.61 Lakhs Crores disbursed to more than 11 Crore farmers so far, it stands as one of the largest DBT schemes globally.
The PM-KISAN scheme has played a vital role in providing income support to landholder farmer families across the country with cultivable land. The scheme’s direct benefit transfer has ensured timely financial assistance to millions of farmers, including women beneficiaries, contributing to their socio-economic well-being. During the Covid Pandemic, more than Rs. 1.75 lakh Crore was transferred to the beneficiaries that provided a great relief to farmers and their families in a difficult time.
