The Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India has taken a major leap forward in advancing the welfare of farmers by launching an AI chatbot for the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Saman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme. The virtual launch event held in New Delhi highlighted the government’s commitment to leverage technology to improve the lives of farmers across the country.
The introduction of the AI chatbot aims to streamline and enhance the efficiency of the PM-KISAN scheme by providing farmers with quick, clear and accurate answers to their queries. Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Kailash Chaudhary, who inaugurated the AI chatbot, highlighted its alignment with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of transforming the agricultural landscape through technology-based governance. .
Chowdhury emphasized that the AI chatbot will serve as a valuable tool for accessing scheme information and resolving complaints. They also stressed the need to expand their services to include related issues like weather information, soil conditions and bank payments. The minister lauded the ministry officials for speedily integrating the technology, which is expected to ease the workload for agriculture officers at both the central and state levels.
The virtual event witnessed the participation of dignitaries from the Government of India and State Governments, reflecting the importance of this milestone in the agriculture sector. The successful launch of the AI chatbot for the PM-KISAN scheme reiterates the government’s commitment to harnessing technological advancements for the betterment of farmers.
Agriculture and Family Welfare Secretary Manoj Ahuja announced plans to implement the AI chatbot in other major schemes of the ministry in the coming months. Pramod Mehrida, Additional Secretary, Department of Agriculture and Family Welfare, gave a detailed presentation on the features of the chatbot and its potential benefits for farmers.
The AI chatbot acts as a comprehensive guide for the users, offering timely and accurate answers to their queries related to the PM-KISAN scheme. Notably, this is the first AI chatbot to be integrated with a major flagship scheme of the central government. Its development and growth has been made possible with the support of EKstep Foundation and Bhashini.
Accessible through the PM KISAN mobile app, the AI chatbot is integrated with Bhashini, which provides multilingual support to cater to the linguistic and regional diversity of PM KISAN beneficiaries. It is hoped that this integration of modern technology will increase transparency and empower farmers to make informed decisions.
Currently available in English, Hindi, Bengali, Odia, and Tamil, the chatbot will soon be accessible in all 22 languages of the country, making it more inclusive and accessible to farmers across the country.
First Published: 22 Sep 2023, 07:54 IST