For farmers of Vaiyavur in Chengalpattu district, there are new helpers on the farms; they are happy that their new helpers will just do as told and not refuse anything, or protest at poor wages. These new helpers are nothing but drones. Farmers seemed to have realised the importance of deploying drones for various agricultural activities such as spraying of pesticide or crop dusting. With shortage of manpower hitting many villages, using technology is a happier option for them.
Kamakshi Parthiban, a farmer, said that in agriculture timing was important. If the farm hands come late, the pests might spread and affect more plants. “But if we can get drones on rent with people to operate them, it would help a lot. Walking in the fields is a problem sometimes since there could be snakes and other rodents, the drones will help avoid that too,” said the farmer who attended a training programme organised by a batch of students of SRM College of Agricultural Sciences as part of a rural project.
The students have been staying at the village and involving the farming community in various activities, including training them in the use of drones, mushroom cultivation, terrace gardens, better pest management and providing information about loans and subsidies, explained Karthika Nath, a final year student.
