Agro-Smart

We are solving a very basic yet extremely necessary problem of inconsistency of agricultural irrigation in poorly aided agricultural regions of India. The solution we propose is a sensor which when put inside the soil gives reading of the soil moisture and tells whether the soil requires more or less water and in either case sends a text message to the farmer so he can action accordingly. If our idea is scaled globally it can change lives because the poor farmers lack even the basic money to buy back the seeds and start from scratch if their crops get damaged in a season. Many commit suicide or are left with nothing when such a thing happens. The way we prevent them from damaging their crops can help so many farmers around the world and also in water conservation if overirrigation was the reason their crops got damaged.

Depletion of fresh water due to excessive consumption of ground water resources during agricultural processes, results in scarcity and water borne diseases. Lack  of technology and literacy among the farmers of our country is a major problem which results in low crop yield and contamination. Inadequate and uneven distribution of rainfalls and low soil retention capacity destroys the quality of the crops. Overwatering fields leads to soil erosion as vital nutrients are washed away. Our product will not only supervise the moisture content of the soil but also help the farmers understand sustainable agricultural practices. In the process of thermoregulation the plant evaporates 99% of the water obtained, using only 0.2%-0.4% for the formation of vegetative mass. Our product will measure the soil moisture content and notify the farmers through a message service. Farmers will be able to obtain sufficient information about the above listed problems and practice sustainable farming.

• With 70% water usage, farming and its wasteful irrigation techniques are a key contributor to worldwide water shortage. India has around 17% of the world's population but just 4% of the world's fresh water resources, with 84 percent of that being used for agricultural purposes. Managing the supply of water to the soil also ensures that the key nutrients remain intact in the soil, and is not washed away due to overuse of water.
• Our proposed approach is moisture sensor that detects the moisture content of the soil in a given specified space, as well as the auto-sense capability of determining soil requirements (water, mineral), and protects them from climatic calamities as well as intrusion detection with real-time notifications through SMS or mail. It is unique as it is cost-efficient, easy to implement, reliable and caters to the needs of the farmers.
• Our goal was to create a device that will save energy and water; and also water the crops adequately reducing the tension of the farmer.

Our solution will serve small scale as well as large scale farmers across the nation. These farmers will be more connected to their crops decrease the labour intensive work. Our solution will ensure higher crop productivity, decreased use of water and reduce impact on natural ecosystems. There will be an increase in worker safety and agricultural literacy. Economic conditions will improve due to increased confidence, production, and profits for small farm communities. 

• Agriculture is the primary source of food grains and other raw materials for humans, making it the backbone of their existence. It is critical to the country's economic development. Unfortunately, many farmers continue to adopt traditional farming methods, which results in low crop and fruit yields. Moreover, water overuse affects the quality of soil too. It increases the soil salinity and results in the pollution of the nutrients present in the soil.
• We have proposed an improved agricultural mechanism–Smart irrigation. This enhanced version is highly user-friendly, less economic intensive and highly secure as compared to the prevalent system.

Agriculture is a significant part of the Indian economy, accounting for over 17% of total GDP and employing more than 60% of the population. It is the foundation of India's economic system.

• 1/5th of world’s population lacks save drinking water due to the wastage of water done by farmers in the traditional system of irrigation. The threat that the problem of water shortage poses to us in the upcoming future is the reason for our motivation for creating such a solution. We chose to design a technology that will regulate water utilised in agriculture. We hope to use this technology to verify that the water supplied to crops is scientifically adequate depending on moisture levels.
• As a result, we developed an unmanned, low-cost, energy-efficient irrigation system with a customised message alarm system to ensure a brighter future with adequate water supplies.

• Based on the analysis of all smart irrigation approaches, we proposed a sensor-based approach that senses the moisture content of the soil in a given explicit space, as well as the auto-sense capability of determining soil requirements (water, mineral) and protecting them from climatic disasters, as well as intrusion detection with real-time notification.
• Our product stands out from the rest because it includes a message alert system that saves labor and time. This approach was built into the gadget after it was completed to keep farmers informed about the soil moisture content as well as any natural disasters that could alter the soil texture. From time to time, the message will report to the recognized owner. It is also possible to receive it by mail. We also hope to assist small farmers who rely solely on rain for irrigation by making this device as economical as feasible.
• After reviewing the entire process, we can conclude that this smart-Agri solution is unique in terms of automatic soil moisture sensing that is cost-effective, easy to deploy, and provides real-time notice to farmers if any changes occur during any cultivation event. Our invention is more resilient and trustworthy since we are employing IBM Watson Data analytics and Bayesian analysis.

Currently our solution is not serving anyone since we are an npo we are looking to cater to people with any funding/donation we receive o begin with. 1 year from now we are looking to cater to the needs of around 200,000 farmers, in 5 uyears we will be looking to cater around a 1,000,000 farmers.

• Farmers can use scientific data and technology to boost crop yields and stay current with cutting-edge farming techniques. Crop irrigation systems are being monitored and controlled with the use of technology. Increased investment in rural infrastructure, agricultural research, and extension services, including through enhanced international cooperation, can improve agricultural productive capacity in developing countries, particularly in India, where agriculture is one of the most important contributors to GDP.
• Our product aims ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production, that help maintain ecosystems, save energy and water for future generations and strengthen capacity for adaptation to climate change, extreme weather, drought, flooding and other disasters by our alert messaging systems and improve land and soil quality indirectly.
• Lastly, our product is based on a CMMI model. The Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) is a model that helps organizations to: Effectuate process improvement. Develop behaviours that decrease risks in service, product, and software development. This also makes it easier to keep a check on our product from time to time.

As our solution is still in its initial steps only five people are working on it. Though the work started two years back, due to COVID-19 we couldn’t utilize our complete potential and hence were not able to expand it according to our expectations.

We consider ourselves to be in the prime position to deliver this solution for a diversity of reasons. First and foremost, we started working on this plan around two years back and since then our project has been in research and development. The time spent in the same has helped us develop a deeper understanding of the technology that we are using as well as how we can tackle the barriers that we might face in the future. Our team was built in such a way so as to ensure everyone brings something to the table. Hargun Sodhi, who was the brilliant mind behind the idea and the holder of its patent takes care of the technological and scientific aspects. Archit Goyal and Jayant Joshi look after the overall functioning of the project with their impeccable management skills. Mitali Chandra and Sarvagya Malik, who are the creative problem solvers of the team, ensure that we are able to overcome all the hurdles in our path in the easiest and most efficient manner. This along with team dedication and mutual respect for one another is what makes us believe that we will be successfully able to broadcast our vision and solution in front of a large audience. 

Though the competition requires us to give a name for the position of the team leader, with all due respect to the rules and guidelines of MIT Solve, we believe that a team can work to its full potential when everyone is accountable to one another and there is no single authority. This ensures that the power does not lie in the hands of one person. Also, everyone’s skillset differs, one person holds mastery in one field while the other in another. So to utilize the skills and knowledge of all the members, we came to a mutual decision of making everyone in charge of one particular aspect of the competition and take the sole lead for that. This way we were able to work very efficiently and the burden of getting everything done didn’t lie on the shoulders of a single person. This also helped each of us with personal growth as at a certain time during the competition, we all were in a position to make difficult choices as well as tackle a variety of obstacles. We would also like to add that we are not of the opinion that having a single leader is wrong in any way, but for our team, we realized through the method of trial and error that having different leads for different parts worked the best.

Our idea was brought into existence by us when were merely 15 and we believe similar to ours many revolutionary and innovative ideas are born in schools. Unfortunately, most of these ideas are not even implemented irrespective of how brilliant they are. One simple reason for this is the lack of resources available to high schoolers. Often, ideas started by high schoolers are not taken seriously and hence they do not see the light of the day. Entrepreneurship amongst school students is not promoted as much as it should be. 

Therefore, we as five high schoolers who have confidence that our solution, if executed with adequate resources, can have a lasting impact on the lives of not only the farmers but many others as well and to achieve this goal we are applying to Solve. We are not only looking forward to getting the monetary resources required for the implementation of our idea but also the technical as well as business skills which the MIT faculty can provide us with. The guidance will help us ensure that we don’t make any mistakes in our path which, we are bound to make considering we all will be working on something of this scale for the first time. 

At this stage of our product, we have a very basic prototype that can perform only a few tasks. We aim to develop it in such a way so as to introduce many more features which will help make the process of farming more efficient as well as easier. We have been working on the same for quite some time now and aim to achieve this goal soon. But as we all know, two heads are better than one, so if we get help in achieving this goal of ours, we think it will be done in less time as well as we will be able to obtain better results. Along with that, the success of any product is determined by the number of lives it changes. Hence, keeping a check on how well the product is able to help people, issues being faced by our customers, and promotion of the product is also very important in its success. 

The purpose of our product is to aid farmers in the agricultural processes. Hence, the very first organization that comes to our mind for partnership is the IARI - Indian Agricultural Research Institution. The Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), commonly known as the Pusa Institute, is India's National Institute for agricultural research, education, and extension. We aim to work with them in the future for the further development of our product. We believe with the aid of their expertise we might be able to add several features to our product further making the procedure of agriculture easier for the farmers. 

We would also like to get ourselves affiliated with the Indian Government, as we think that they can help us promote our product and achieve our noble aim of ensuring the betterment of the farmers which in turn will help to advance our economy. 
Lastly, it would be a great honor for us if we get the golden opportunity to work alongside the brilliant minds at MIT, who can not only aid us with their resources but also with the ample knowledge they can bring to the table. We think that the execution of an idea requires the efforts of not only one but many hands and if by god’s grace we have the help of the MIT faculty, we are certain that we will be able to take our product to new heights and change several lives for the good. 

Our team plans to use The AI for Humanity Prize to advance our solution by providing it in a much more high-tech way, that is adding humidity sensors, temperature sensor. Also, we plan to use solar panels in future for the power required in highly efficient results.

Secondly, India is known as the country of agriculture and as we have set the bar so high, having more efficient and economically feasible technology helps us provide effective crop production. Currently, the farmers using the traditional method is not that effective with their crop production and end up investing a lot of time, labour, water and energy. With the seeking new technological opportunities, we would like to provide our product in high quantity with even better technical features.