Connecting solutions to end rural poverty

Making farms smart to meet farmers needs

Technology as if people mattered

Welcome to Smart Farm India

Smart Farming is the application of digital information systems and other agriculture related technologies designed to make farming both sustainable and highly productive - our aim is to make these opportunities accessible to the most impoverished farmers.

Smart Farm India aims to double the incomes of small farms (<2Ha) and other food producers such as fishing communities and beekeepers.

We put people at the centre of project design and focus on deliverable and sustainable positive outcomes for low-income farmers.

Why Small Farmers?

Jeevika is developing “Smart Farm India” with the goal to shift basic farming to a more efficient, sustainable, and productive model.

In India, farming accounts for 16% of GDP and is the biggest employer in the country. Given this, small farmers are the key to addressing the rural poverty challenge. This may sound relatively straightforward, but there are points to consider:

Reliance on low value staple crops which are vulnerable to price fluctuations and the environmental impact of climate change. Just one bad yield, due to an increasingly erratic climate, pests, or illness and most farmers have no buffer available.
Limited collective bargaining power and the need to engage with money lenders and middlemen for assistance, which minimises the overall return.
Often poorly educated with no access to affordable capital to invest in the best available technologies.

Subsistence agriculture is often a thankless, risky, and back-breaking job. However, while these farmers face numerous challenges, solutions are now becoming available. Research on both the challenges and solutions can be found here; Jeevika Smart Farm Solutions

Making a farm smart

Get involved

Are you interested in our growing network or becoming a partner organisation, volunteer, or sponsor?

Smart Farm Network

Learn how we are developing a Smart Farm Network to share ideas and create effective Smart Farm teams.

Projects

Find out how farms in Odisha are becoming smarter due to our latest cold storage pilot project.

Partners

Find out how Smart Farm India is bringing together NGO’s, universities, companies, and government agencies.

July 2024

What does our Smart Farm Project entail? Here we break down the key strategies of our Daspalla demonstration project and explain how they help improve rural livelihoods.

June 2024

Breaking down the benefits of our greenhouses. Low-cost greenhouses are one part of our Daspalla Smart Farm Project, transforming rural livelihoods in India.

May 2024

Sharing an insight into our nutri-garden initiative, run alongside our partners at JRP. Nutri-gardens not only help improve nutrition in rural India, they also encourage economic empowerment, giving individual families the opportunity to sell their surplus produce. By providing initial seed packages and education on how to begin and develop gardens, we can empower these communities and encourage sustainable development in rural India.

Check out the video below explaining more about this incredible project:

April 2024

Stories from Our Smart Farms

“This modern technology has truly helped me achieve excellence and turn my dedication into fruitful outcomes”

Minatinari Bhoi has been farming her land for over 5 years, using traditional methods and switching between cultivating paddy and growing vegetables depending on the season. However, her land sits beside a dam which attracts high numbers of insects and pests as well as becoming the source of local disputes during extreme heat waves.

With the help of Jeevika and JRP, she was introduced to greenhouse farming.and has transformed her farming:

She has grown a wide variety of crops including coriander and kosala leaves.

The net of the greenhouse reduces the influx of insects allowing her to transition to organic farming.

The controlled greenhouse environment reduces water demand and irrigation costs.

She has experienced no losses from her crops, with profits ranging from 25-30% so far.

February 2024

Stories from our Smart Farms

Learn about Sumitra’s journey to success with greenhouse farming!

Sharing some beautiful words of life in Mitukuli tribal forest village:

In the early morning light, as the world slowly stirred awake, a group of tribal women embarked on their journey to the fields. With their trusty farm tools slung over their shoulders and determination gleaming in their eyes, they set out on the familiar path leading to their farm. The forest whispered its secrets as they walked, weaving through the dense foliage with ease born of years spent in harmony with nature.

As they reached the clearing where their fields lay, the women wasted no time. With practiced hands, they began to till the soil, their laughter mingling with the sounds of birdsong and rustling leaves. Each woman brought her own expertise to the task at hand, whether it be planting seeds, tending to saplings, or harvesting ripe crops.

Despite the early hour and the physical demands of their work, there was an undeniable sense of joy in the air. These women were not just cultivating the land; they were nurturing their families, preserving their heritage, and empowering themselves in the process. Theirs was a story of resilience and strength, of tradition and innovation intertwined.

As the sun rose higher in the sky, painting the world in shades of gold and amber, the women continued their work, their spirits undimmed by the challenges they faced. For them, each day spent in the fields was a testament to their unwavering dedication to their community, their land, and each other. And as they returned home at the end of the day, weary but fulfilled, they knew that their efforts would bear food not just for themselves, but for generations to come.

– written by Biraj Krushna Upadhyay, assistant director at our partner organisation, Jeevan Rekha Parishad.

An insight into the cold-storage Smart Farm Project

Janisahi village holds one of the two solar-powered cold storage units set up by Jeevika Trust and our partners, JRP. The primary goals are to:

Reduce post-harvest losses
Minimise distress sales
Enhance value chain management
Improve market linkages

Ultimately, the goal is to double the incomes of smallhold farmers.

January 2024

Stories from our Smart Farms – From traditional to tech-savvy. Read about Prahalada’s greenhouse farming success and how it has transformed his life:

December 2023

Stories from our Smart Farms – Read about Ranjita’s greenhouse farming success and how it has transformed her life:

Looking back on our cold storage success!

With the help of our partners JRP and Brunel University, Jeevika opened a solar-powered cold storage in Daspalla last year. Instead of having to sell their produce when market values are low to avoid spoilage, tomato farmers can now preserve their tomatoes until market rates increase. Their record profits highlight the project’s success with some farmers earning over 10 times their original income for their crops!

To catch up on all our recent news click here