In order to help farmers derive maximum benefits and returns from the cotton fields, the “Cotton Doctor” app, an Android and web-based Decision Support System (DSS), has been introduced by World Wide Fund for Nature-India (WWF-India) in collaboration with Swedish multinational IKEA which alerts cotton farmers in Maharashtra about weather conditions, and assists them in making informed and effective decisions on cotton growing.
With the help of a click, farmers can now feed in the time and duration he wants the cotton saplings to be watered and then activate the water pump automatically.
A sim card fixed in an Automatic Irrigation Switch (AIS) attached to the motor pump allows the farmer to activate the ump from anywhere. Not just this, the app inform the farmer about the pink bollworn, a common pest that attacks cotton plants.
Ghule, who hails from Wakhari village, some 25 km from Jalna, told that the infestation of pink bollworm devastated cotton production in the state last year.
“Cotton farmers lost between 60 to 90 per cent of their total produce last year,” claimed Ghule. “But with this app, we are informed when pink bollworm is likely to attack our plants and at what temperature the infestation can occur. The SMS alerts I receive recommend appropriate medicines/sprays I should apply to eliminate the pest.”
It has a pumping motor that can be turned on and off for the detection of moisture content in soil on earth. This allows vital utilisation of water. Nearly 50 to 70 per cent of water can be saved by following the Automatic Soil Moisture (ASM) alerts on the app which directs to use water only when it is necessary