National Workshop on Kisan Sarathi Organised

23 September 2025, New Delhi

The Agricultural Knowledge Management Unit of ICAR–Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, organized a National Workshop on ‘Creation of Agricultural Advisories using Kisan Sarathi Kosh’ today. The workshop was conducted under the ICAR project “Kisan Sarathi 2.0: Enhancement, Operation, Maintenance and Support”, jointly funded by ICAR and the Digital India Corporation.

The inaugural session was graced by eminent dignitaries including Dr. Ch. Srinivasa Rao, Director, ICAR–IARI; Dr. Anil Rai, Assistant Director General (ICT), ICAR; Dr. Rajender Parsad, Director, ICAR–Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute; Shri Anindya Banerjee, Advisor (Digital Agriculture), Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare and several dignitaries from Digital India Corporation, New Delhi and from Delhi based ICAR institutes.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Rao highlighted the importance of digital tools in modernizing agricultural extension services. “Kisan Sarathi 2.0 is a transformative platform that empowers farmers by providing them localized, timely, and credible advisories. Its application is a significant step toward ensuring the welfare of farmers by reducing uncertainties, improving decision-making, and enhancing resilience against climate risks. Through such innovations, we are moving closer to the vision of a digitally empowered agricultural ecosystem,” he emphasized.

Dr. Rai highlighted about the technical innovations behind the platform. “Kisan Sarathi is not just an advisory platform, but a dynamic bridge between scientists, extension workers, and farmers. The inclusion of Kisan Sarathi Kosh as a centralized knowledge repository ensures that advisories are region-specific, crop-specific, and need-based, enabling faster response to farmers’ queries. This integration of technology with knowledge management will bring precision, speed, and inclusivity in agricultural extension,” he stated.

Dr. Prasad highlighted the digital solutions towards agri advisories.

The platform ensures that farmers receive accurate information in the right language, location, and time, thereby enabling informed decisions for better productivity and profitability.

The technical sessions included hands-on training on creation and dissemination of advisories, guidance on user management and approval workflows, and an introduction to Kisan Sarathi Kosh, a centralized digital knowledge repository. These practical exercises enabled participants to acquire the skills required for building a more responsive and farmer-centric advisory system.

Around 75 delegates from ICAR institutes and partner organizations participated in the workshop, with a focus on collaboratively generating and validating advisories for Rabi crops using the Kisan Sarathi platform.

(Source: ICAR–Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi)