Andhra to conduct village-level farm machinery survey

Amaravati, Jul 27 (PTI) Andhra Pradesh will commence a village-level agricultural machinery survey across the state to analyse overall availability and usage, and is expected to be completed by August 31, said a senior official on Sunday.
    According to Andhra Pradesh Director of Agriculture Dilli Rao, the exercise will be carried out by agricultural assistants through Rythu Seva Kendras (RSKs).
    "This survey will assess machinery needs based on crop area and season, enabling demand-based budgeting rather than a uniform allocation," said Rao in the official press release.
    The survey will document machinery owned by farmers, Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies (PACS) and private agencies, including equipment purchased with or without subsidies, to analyse overall availability and usage.
    Details such as ownership, condition and operational status will be uploaded digitally to the Agriculture Information Management System (FMIS) on the Andhra Pradesh Agriculture Information and Management System (APAIMS 2.0).
    Key objectives include creating a digital machinery inventory, linking data with Custom Hiring Centers (CHCs) and identifying idle equipment for redeployment to improve rural agricultural productivity.
    The initiative will also support schemes like Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM) and PM-KISAN, while guiding policies on subsidy-based equipment distribution and custom hiring services in the state.
    The department plans to integrate AI-based crop advisories, enable e-CHC real-time bookings, and expand drone spraying services for farmers, Rao added.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)