As the Chair of the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI), India effectively organized the GPAI Summit from December 12 - 14, 2023, in the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. During the last three days, approximately 30 talks featuring eminent AI specialists from GPAI, international organizations, industry/startups, and academia were arranged. Several of these sessions were conducted in private meetings, attended by delegates and experts from GPAI. Additional sessions were conducted in a public setting and broadcast live to allow for broader engagement. More than 22,000 participants attended the summit, and out of these, 15,000+ AI enthusiasts participated electronically. In addition, other startups and prominent tech businesses are presenting their AI applications and solutions at the Global AI Expo. 

This week, we will delve into the AI-powered Kisan-eMitra chatbot.

Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi

The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) is a scheme initiated at the national level in February 2019 to provide additional financial support to farmers who own land. The initiative utilizes technology and process innovations to ensure all eligible farmers can profit quickly. 

Farmers have been provided with various means of distributing information, including the Know Your Status (KYS) module, hotline numbers, and a grievance redressal system on the PM-KISAN portal. However, accessibility issues, inadequate comprehension of technology, and difficulties with literacy led to restricted outreach and diminished effectiveness. 

Objective

Many farmers need help comprehending the eligibility requirements, application procedure, and updates about the scheme. Beneficiaries frequently encounter delays in obtaining responses and settlements to their claims within the existing grievance management system. Furthermore, the beneficiaries' predicament worsens due to the absence of transparent and unambiguous solutions. Efficient decision-making can be ensured by implementing dashboards and reports to monitor grievances effectively in this system. The existing approach for addressing complaints must also accommodate the language and regional variations among farmers. 

Agriculture and Farmer's Welfare

The Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare is dedicated to rectifying these limitations and enhancing the services provided to the beneficiaries in the last stage of the country's agricultural process. Implementing an efficient grievance management system for the PM-KISAN program improves the overall efficacy of the plan. Therefore, the Department has created the Kisan-eMitra chatbot, which is driven by artificial intelligence (AI) and operates on a self-learning AI model. This chatbot was built through experimentation and exploring all potential use cases. This project empowers farmers by overcoming the current obstacles, guaranteeing that every opinion is acknowledged and every problem is resolved. The development and enhancement of this chatbot are made possible via the assistance of Wadhwani AI, EkStep Foundation, Samagra Governance, and Bhashini.  

PM-KISAN AI chatbot

The main goal of the AI-powered chatbot for the PM-KISAN is to deliver timely, transparent, and precise answers to the inquiries posed by the recipients. The AI chatbot can respond to inquiries about the progress of applications, payment information, ineligibility status, and any updates or modifications made to the program. This AI chatbot is designed to serve as a complete guide for the recipients and provide a trustworthy source of information about the program. 

Regional languages

Furthermore, to optimize user experience and offer improved services to farmers, the chatbot is seamlessly connected with Bhashini (National Language Translation Mission). This integration enables users to interact with the chatbot in their language. The system can accept audio and text queries in the user's desired language, translate them, and provide responses in the local language in both text and audio formats. During Phase I, the chatbot was launched and made accessible in five languages: English, Hindi, Tamil, Bangla, and Odiya, with the assistance of Bhashini. It is being expanded to include five other languages: Malayalam, Gujarati, Punjabi, Telugu, and Marathi. In the subsequent stages, it will be accessible in all 22 regional languages.

Conclusion

Implementing the PM-KISAN AI chatbot application is a notable advancement in improving the efficiency and coverage of the PM-KISAN scheme. The Department of Agriculture wants to integrate the Chatbot with other Government Agri schemes and programs to enhance its capabilities. It includes leveraging Advanced AI and ML technologies. Utilizing AI, the Department aims to transform this Chatbot into a comprehensive resource that addresses all agricultural issues, inquiries, and assistance for Indian farmers.