Patiala: Devised to curb farm fires, chatbot gets 300 calls daily

Mohit Khanna

Patiala, October 20

WhatsApp chatbot “7380016070” developed to plug rising farm fires has started receiving encouraging response in Patiala district.

As farmers flood the chatbot with queries, the Patiala district administration has set up a 20-member call centre in the district headquarters with Deputy Commissioner Patiala Sakshi Sawhney personally monitoring the inquiries of ex situ machinery.

Rakesh Garg, the nodal officer of the stubble management initiative, reported that they are now receiving nearly 300 calls a day from farmers through the chatbot, all of whom are urgently seeking information about ex situ stubble management machinery.

This surge in interest indicates growing awareness among farmers about the alternatives to burning crop residue, said Garg.

In addition to the chatbot, the administration has deployed nodal officers in all 935 villages to guide farmers in adopting eco-friendly farming practices. The administration has stepped up its efforts by putting 125 crop residue management (CRM) machines into service. These machines include balers, choppers and mulchers which help reduce the environmental impact of crop residue while making it more cost effective for farmers.

Rakesh Garg explained, “In the past, many small-scale farmers were forced to burn residue and used to complain that they couldn’t afford stubble-management machines or bear the diesel costs associated with in situ and ex situ management. As the government is now offering stubble management services for free, small farmers are showing keen interest and refraining from setting their crops on fire. Many small farmers have even collaborated and engaged in land pooling for collective stubble management.”

Amber Banerjee, who supervises the call centre, said that this initiative is the first of its kind in the country. The success of the chatbot and the district’s comprehensive approach to addressing farm fires have attracted the attention of other regions facing similar challenges.

The chatbot was created a fortnight ago with the help of software engineering students (coding experts) of Thapar University.