How AI can tackle the tomato crisis
Why ‘la tomatina’ in India has turned out as real ‘food fight’
In India, homemakers are having a tough time turning to alternatives to dish out tasty food at the dinner table and having to hunt through old cookbooks to find recipes to serve flavourful food for guests, as well as the men and children of the house. Tomato is almost a staple across states in India. But, suddenly, it disappeared from the markets around May-June. This continued till mid-August!
Tomato, grown as a rabi crop in such parts the country as Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, reaches the market around March to August. After that, the kharif crop arrives at the market from Nashik, in Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh, among certain other parts of the country. To ensure a continuous supply of tomatoes to the market, farmers usually rotate the crops.
Earlier this year, around March-April, because of a bumper crop of tomatoes, the wholesale price of tomatoes suddenly fell to Rs 2-3 per kilogram, which was not sufficient to cover even their transport cost. Because of the glut in the markets, most farmers had no takers, which forced many of them to dump truckloads of tomatoes and abandon its cultivation. Whatever of the harvest was left was damaged by torrential rain in the middle of June, leading to a sudden tomato shortage.
Soon afterwards, the prices started rising. By July, tomatoes were retailing at Rs 200-250 per kilogram, with pests and the heat wave, among other factors, playing a key role in destroying tomato harvests. Usually, July is the month when the crop price reaches higher level than at other times of the year because it sits between harvests.
Every time something like this happens, farmers en masse shift to such crops, leading to over-production. Soon, the price rise turns into a price crash and this cycle goes on year after year—with potatoes, onions, tomatoes—and the list goes on.
It becomes the responsibility of the central and state governments to take up initiatives to help farmers. For instance, to meet the present shortage, the horticulture department in Karnataka has decided to distribute millions of seedlings. But, in reality, this may lead to another huge crisis due to possible over-production. The cropping pattern in India is, basically, influenced by such factors as soil, rainfall, temperature and weather conditions.
Cropping pattern is a changeable concept that refers to the dynamic shifts of areas under various crops at any given point of time. With major technological advancements, the cropping pattern can now be determined based on weather forecasts and market needs. But state governments often fail to take proactive roles, thus leading to farmers taking random decisions.
To prevent such scenarios regarding tomatoes in future, or for that matter any other crop, governments should issue advisory on what crops farmers can grow in different areas according to the likely demand for various agricultural products considering various factors. These include deficit rainfall in various parts of a state and weather forecasts. Unless farmers get timely guidance in such matters, they will carry on following unscientific practices to their own detriment and the country’s, too.
With major advancements in technology, agriculture is witnessing major changes. At present, there are many agriculture startups that are taking up farmer-friendly initiatives.
AI Impact on Agriculture
Artificial Intelligence (AI) in agriculture is likely to play a significant role in the coming years, as it has the potential to revolutionize the sector by improving crop yields, reducing waste and increasing efficiency. A report by MarketsandMarkets says that AI in the agriculture market is about to experience exponential growth, with the market size expected to grow from $2.35 billion in 2020 to $10.83 billion by 2025 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 35.6% during the forecast period.
One of the most notable advantages of AI in agriculture is collecting and analysing large amounts of data for farmers. This helps with informed decision-making and better yields that are essential for addressing such scenarios, besides tackling the growing global food crisis.
AI can also help farmers monitor climate changes, soil conditions and crop growth. Thus, they will be able to identify diseases early and take proper preventive measures before a crop gets damaged. AI will also continue to aid in forecasting weather changes, allowing farmers to plan their activities better and to take advantage of the optimal planting season.
Additionally, AI can assist in lowering waste and the use of resources, too. For instance, farmers can use AI to optimize the use of fertilizers and the amount of water on crops for a more sustainable and environmentally friendly practice. This optimization will reduce the risk of soil and water contamination, which has become a major concern nowadays.
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Rupee falls 9 paise to all-time low of 90.58 against US dollar in early trade
Mumbai (PTI): Rupee depreciated 9 paise to an all-time low of 90.58 against US dollar in early trade on Monday, weighed down by uncertainty over an India-US trade deal and persistent foreign fund outflows.
Forex traders said rupee is trading with a negative bias as investors are in wait and watch mode and awaiting cues from the India-US trade deal front.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 90.53 against the US dollar, then fell further to an all-time intraday low of 90.58 against the greenback, registering a fall of 9 paise over its previous close.
On Friday, the rupee had slipped 17 paise to close at an all-time low of 90.49 against the American currency.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.05 per cent lower at 98.35.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading higher by 0.52 per cent at USD 61.44 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share benchmark index Sensex was trading 298.86 points lower at 84,968.80, while the Nifty was down 121.40 points at 25,925.55.
Foreign Institutional Investors sold equities worth Rs 1,114.22 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.
"FPIs continue to be in selling mode in equity and debt while RBI has been selling dollars to fund their long positions," said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.
