Bharat-VISTAAR AI platform for farmers to be launched today

New Delhi: Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will launch a new digital companion, Bharat-VISTAAR, from Jaipur on Tuesday, marking the rollout of an initiative announced in the Union Budget for 2026-27. The AI-based platform is designed to deliver timely and reliable information to farmers across the country through phone calls, chatbots and a mobile application. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Bharat-VISTAAR will offer updates on weather, mandi prices, pests and diseases, soil health, crop advisory services and details of government schemes. In its first phase, the service will operate in Hindi and English and is expected to reach millions of farmers in states including Maharashtra, Bihar and Gujarat. Farmers nationwide will be virtually connected during the launch through Krishi Vigyan Kendras, agricultural universities and other institutions.

Chouhan will also release the AI for Agriculture Roadmap and formally launch the Bharat-VISTAAR app. The platform integrates inputs from the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, including packages of practices, crop management guidance and soil health card-based advisories, positioning it as a digital agriculture advisor to support farm decisions.

Within three months, the app will expand to Tamil, Bengali, Assamese and Kannada, with state-specific schemes added. The government aims to cover 11 languages within six months.