Presentation by S Srinivsan, IKSL at the CCAFS Workshop on Institutions and Policies to Scale out Climate Smart Agriculture held between 2-5 December 2013, in Colombo, Sri Lanka

1. Key Decision Challenges: Perspectives from Stakeholders“IFFCO Kisan Sanchar Limited, India“
by S.Srinivasan
Institutions and Policies for Scaling Out Climate Smart Agriculture
Colombo, Sri Lanka
December 2, 2013

2. INDIAN FARMERS FERTILISER COOPERATIVE LIMITED
• Owned by 40,000 plus member
cooperatives
• Strives to improve agricultural
productivity and welfare of farmers
• Largest producer and distributor of
chemical fertilisers in India
• Well known for promotional and
extension activities in rural India
Nurturing Mother Earth’s Bounty

3. Efforts at ‘Climate Smart Industry’
• Adopting State-of-the-art technology for the betterment of
operations to decrease energy consumption
• Launching new mitigation technologies through retrofits and availing
benefits under Kyoto Protocol’s CDM, wherever feasible
• Complying with the Statutory requirements on gaseous and liquid
effluents from the production facilities
• Promoting adoption of Fertilizer Best Management Practices (BMP);
• Manufacture of
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Slow release fertilisers
Water Soluble Fertilisers
Micronutrients & micronutrient incorporated fertilisers

4. Industry’s contribution to
Climate Smart Agriculture
CSR Activities
•
Afforestation, Watershed Management, Conservation of Water, Land
reclamation etc.
Promotional Activities
• Enabling & ensuring that farmers use fertiliser appropriately
• Enhancing input use efficiency - minimising GHG emissions,
• Conservation Agriculture - zero tillage, Laser levelling etc.
• Promotion of Bio-fertilisers/ composting/ Green manuring
• Promotion of weather based crop insurance
Promoting institutions to realise specific objectives
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IFFDC (Afforestation),
ITGI (Crop Insurance),
CORDET (Training & Capacity Building),
IKSL (Information Dissemination)

5. IKSL : Joint Venture
Partners
• Serving rural India since 1967
• World's largest Coop. in Fertilizer Sector
• Around 40,000 Coop. societies,
• 55 million members,
Objectives
• Provide additional services to
enhance farmer productivity
• Build closer bonding with
members
• 330 million indirect dependents
• Largest GSM & integrated telecom player in India. • Enhance penetration amongst
Low Income Rural Household
• World’s 3rd largest
• 192 million Subscribers in India.
• Build Stickiness with the Brand
• 275 million customers in 20 countries
• Pan India footprint, 0.45 m towns & villages
• Pioneer in rural telephony
• Dissemination of content
through mobile phones

6. Mission
• To empower Indian farmers with pertinent information by
leveraging mobile phone
• To improve informed decision making by farmers which
could result in
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reduction in costs,
improvement in quality,
increase in income and enhanced opportunities for
livelihoods
• To strengthen cooperative network

7. Overview of IKSL Services
• Free Voice/ Text messages , Helpline Services
• Focused service to Communities
• Soya bean growers of ADM, Fishermen of Odhisa
• 18 States, 107 agro climatic zones, 2.5 million Subscribers
• Tie-up with right institutions for Content enrichment
• Managing GoI ‘s toll-free call centre services for Farmers
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Monthly landed calls range from 0.4 to 0.6 million
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SMS summary sent to farmers after answering calls
• IKSL has partnership with CCAFS – Karnal & Vaishali

8. Information dissemination in Climate Smart Villages
• Project sponsored by CIMMYT, India office
• IKSL is Content Partner
• Four villages each in Vaishali (Bihar) and Karnal
(Haryana) district
• Daily 2 messages to 500 farmers in each district
• Covering Rice, Maize and Wheat

9. Challenges in Information Dissemination
• Providing customised Voice/ Text Messages to farmers
• Sourcing Content that is relevant and critical
• Location specific information and advisories, especially in
respect of weather & Market rates
• Penetrating into areas where Telecom network is not
effective (low revenue/ low usage areas)
• Availability of specific information on climate change to
farmers

10. Providing weather forecast advisories
• Farmers need accurate, relevant & localised forecasts
• Interpreted weather forecast to be combined with agroadvisory
• Agro Met Field Units of SAUs create the actionable advisories
• Contextual district-wise weather based agro-advisories by IKSL
• Desirable to have advisories at village level
• Necessary Infrastructure has to be put in place

11. Summary
Fertiliser Production
• Fertilisers are essential to increase production on existing land
• Enhanced yields help prevent further deforestation
• Increasing efficiency of fertiliser manufacture as well as its use is
critical to keep overall emissions as low as possible
Information Dissemination
• Farmers prefer Voice messages over text messages
• Farmers also need information on subjects other than Agriculture
• Weather & market information has to be more granular
• Farmers may not be prepared to pay for information but do not
hesitate to pay when there is a problem to be resolved
• Affordable smart phones/ 3G or 4G tariffs in future may allow
information dissemination through images & videos

12. Thank You