Pantnagar Journal of Research

Abstract

Recent advances and significant changes in agriculture are aiming to produce enough food as well as to remain sustainable. With the introduction of modern precision farming technologies, farmers can optimize both farm productivity and profitability with real-time field information obtained from the field. Drone is one such emerging technology that brings revolutionary changes into farming. The study was intended to promote the recent advances in drone technology over the world and its economic reliability in Indian agriculture. Basic and primary agricultural operations that need attention in terms of efficiency and drudgery are listed. Each operation was described in such a way as to point out how better a UAV can perform in terms of precision and control, capability, spray utilization efficiency, adaptability and labour dependency. Recent and highly peer-reviewed articles that focuses on monitoring plant and soil health, application of chemicals, irrigation, farm surveillance, drone pollination, planting and seeding were discussed. Also the current scenario of aerial vehicles, their investment costs and how better a farmer can economically justify holding a drone were discussed. The Intervention of drone technology in Indian agriculture is a hard task as its capital cost is very high and its repair and maintenance require specialized trainee at the field level. With decreasing labour availability and increasing energy spent in the field, may be in the future, need for drone technologies may rise. Drone implication may interest and encourage young people to be involved in agriculture