Digitization: Karnataka Agriculture Department First To Go Fully Paperless

Farmers in Karnataka will be the first in India to have access to entirely paperless, transparent procurement and distribution processes when they become law on April 1, 2023. Beginning on January 1, 2023, the state's agriculture department will take its first step in that direction by becoming the first paperless agricultural department in the nation.

According to a government order dated November 24, 2022, this facility will be available in four districts—Shivamogga, Vijayapura, Chitradurga, and Mysuru—before December 31, 2022, and it will be made available on a trial basis in all 31 districts starting on January 1. The order stated that it would become mandatory on April 1, 2023, and that it would need to be entirely paperless by that time.

The entire digitisation system is being carried out in collaboration with the National Informatic Centre (NIC). Farmers eligible for benefits from over 30 state and federal government programmes can now check their eligibility online.

According to a state agriculture department informed media personnel, "If a farmer purchases seeds or fertilizer from a specific Raitha Samparka Kendra, all of these products will have QR codes. By scanning, it would be possible to determine which farmer had made a purchase from which vendor as well as the specifics of the transaction.

In essence, this holds the vendor accountable for poor-quality seeds. Additionally, this provides us with real-time information about the stock levels in each Raitha Samparka Kendra, and the current information improves our productivity. The administration can maintain transparency thanks to this. By making it simple and convenient for farmers and vendors to maintain data that can be easily referred to in case of potential disputes, the agriculture department's efficiency will be increased. The effectiveness of officials will increase with the adoption of e-files.

The government has issued an order mandating the establishment of e-offices throughout Karnataka, beginning with Raitha Samparka Kendras at the Hobli level and continuing to the head office in Bengaluru. The order emphasized the complete digitization of all offices under the agriculture department, including joint directors, deputy directors, assistant directors, district training centres, laboratories, and Raitha Samparka Kendras. Tock records, office meetings, measurement records, and distribution to beneficiaries, among all the other processes, will all be fully digitalized to make the department completely paperless.

Aadhaar and Pahani are linked to the department's database of over 53 lakh farmers' IDs (FID) in Karnataka (land records). A farmer must sign and enter the number of seeds purchased in a register. Maintaining the data is an uphill task for the authorities. The official explained that a barcode system would make the process paperless and allow the farmers to work from a distance.