The Network Programme on Precision Agriculture (ICAR-NePPA) is the Indian Council of Agricultural Research’s programme of national importance that brings together 16 ICAR research institutes to develop sensor, remote-sensing, AI and ICT-based technologies for applying water, nutrients and pesticides in the right quantity, at the right place and at the right time. ICAR described the programme and its technologies to Parliament in August 2026.
Context
- ICAR informed Parliament about its programme of national importance, the Network Programme on Precision Agriculture (ICAR-NePPA), involving 16 ICAR research institutes across different domains.
- The programme responds to falling input-use efficiency – India uses far more water and fertiliser per unit of output than best practice – and to labour shortages that favour automation.
What Precision Agriculture Is
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- Applying inputs – water, nutrients, pesticides – in the right quantity, at the right place, at the right time, instead of uniformly across a field.
- The gain comes from matching input to actual need: yields rise while waste and pollution fall.
- Tools: soil and crop sensors, drones and satellites, GPS-guided machinery, variable-rate applicators, IoT and AI-based decision support.
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Get this PDF on WhatsApp — one tapor get the download link hereThe Five Domains of ICAR-NePPA
- Crop and soil: spatio-temporal monitoring and management of crop and soil health.
- Post-harvest: sensor-based quality monitoring of mango, banana, pulses and rice.
- Vertical farming: IoT-based precision farming for high-value vegetables under controlled environment.
- Aquaculture: sensor-based monitoring of the aquatic environment.
- Livestock: IoT-enabled animal health monitoring.
Technologies Developed
- Water and nutrients: sensor-based irrigation scheduling, drip fertigation, precision subsurface drip, poly-mulching, raised-bed cultivation and modified raised-and-sunken conservation beds.
- Machinery and drones: drone-based spraying, AI-enabled precision planters and a variable-rate fertiliser applicator.
- Controlled environment: low-cost protected cultivation, hydroponics, aeroponics, agrivoltaic farming (solar panels over crops) and agro-aqua land configuration.
- Sensing and quality instruments: SPAD meter 2.0 for leaf chlorophyll, rapid aflatoxin-B1 detection in maize, IoT cold-room control, an AI grain analyser, AI rice-seed quality assessment, image-based contamination measurement in seed cotton, computer-vision ginning-percentage measurement, digital-twin fruit quality monitoring and blockchain-enabled banana supply-chain traceability.
- Digital tools and training: the Dweep Microclimate Monitor and a Remote Pilot Training Organisation (RPTO) at Dehradun for drone-pilot training.
- Aquaculture: a tank-based super-intensive precision shrimp farming system yielding 120-150 tonnes per hectare a year over three cycles, with smart automation and strict biosecurity.
Why It Matters
In 5 daysNABARD Grade A 2026: what the 2025 cut-offs changed, and the 90-day planRegister free →- Precision use of fertiliser and water cuts the subsidy bill, groundwater depletion and nitrate pollution while raising farm income – the same goals as the Soil Health Card scheme and PM-PRANAM.
- Drone spraying and AI tools open new rural services (the Namo Drone Didi scheme) and agri-tech start-ups.
Important Facts for Examsmost asked
- ICAR-NePPA: Network Programme on Precision Agriculture; 16 ICAR institutes; five domains – crop and soil, post-harvest, vertical farming, aquaculture, livestock.
- Precision agriculture = right input, right quantity, right place, right time.
- Notable outputs: SPAD meter 2.0, AI grain analyser, variable-rate fertiliser applicator, RPTO at Dehradun, super-intensive shrimp system (120-150 t/ha/year).
- ICAR: established 1929, autonomous body under DARE, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
FAQs
How is precision agriculture different from smart farming?
They overlap; precision agriculture is the input-management principle, while smart farming refers to the digital tools – IoT, AI, drones – used to apply it.
Is precision agriculture only for large farms?
No. Sensor-based irrigation, drone-spraying services and app-based advisories are designed for small holdings when delivered through custom-hiring centres and FPOs.
Why is this a NABARD Grade A topic?
Agricultural technology, input-use efficiency and ICAR’s institutions are core ARD questions.
