Crop Manager for Rice-based Systems

The farmers in Bihar will be soon having access to the web based App known as CMRS for better crop and nutrient management

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New Delhi: The fast emerging climatic scenario and global warming is worrying the governments across globe. Over that, the lack of proper agricultural information on time to farmers has also aggravated the situation in far flung areas of the country. Many states in India especially the Bihar and Vidharba region of Maharashtra have been worst sufferers due to illiteracy and lack of information on crop management.

In this backdrop, the Indian government has decided to come up with a hi-tech solution as an answer to unattended agricultural practices issues of the farmers. Crop Manager for Rice-based Systems (CMRS) is a web-based App which can be used with computer, mobile and tablet and aims to increase farmer’s net income and sustain the productivity for rice-based cropping systems. CMRS provides irrigated and rainfed farmers with rice-based cropping systems in Bihar with a crop and nutrient management guideline customized to the needs of an individual farmer. CMRS uses a farmer’s answers to questions on farming practices to automatically generate a rice, wheat, or rabi maize management guideline.

App will be linked with Soil Health scheme for bringing access to new technologies to rural India. 

The CMRS App was launched by the Union Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister, Mr Radha Mohan Singh on July 06, 2016 for better crop and nutrient management for Bihar farmers in a program organised at RCER, the institute of Indian Council for Agriculture Research (ICAR) in Patna. CMRS was adapted, evaluated, and verified in Bihar through collaboration of International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) with the ICAR- RCER, Bihar Agricultural University (BAU), Catholic Relief Services (CRS), and Rajendra Agricultural University (RAU) and CIMMYT.

While launching the App, the Union Minister congratulated scientists of different institutes involved in development of this app. The App will be a part of Digital India program, already launched by the Prime Minister, Mr Narendra Modi and will be linked with Soil Health scheme for bringing access to new technologies to rural India.

Tool is designed for use by extension workers, crop advisers, input providers, and providers of services who interview a farmer using a personal computer, smartphone, or tablet. Based on the experiences in Bihar, hope the CMRS will be implemented on a broader scale across the country in phases.

Farmer friendly App

∎ To be first implemented in Bihar
∎ Designed by experts and ratified by world class research institutes
∎ Customized nutrient management guideline for individual farmers
∎ Information on rice-based cropping systems to farmers
∎ Easily accessible on mobile phone, laptops or tablets