Precision Farming : Precision farming or satellite farming is a farming

management concept based on observing, measuring and responding to

inter and intra-field variability in crops. Precision agriculture aims to
optimize field-level management with regard to: 1) Crop science: by
matching farming practices more closely to crop needs (e.g. fertilizer
inputs); 2)Environmental protection: by reducing environmental risks
and footprint of farming (e.g. limiting leaching of nitrogen); 3)Economics:
by boosting competitiveness through more efficient practices (e.g.
improved management of fertilizer usage and other inputs). --Precision
agriculture also provides farmers with a wealth of information to: • build
up a record of their farm • improve decision making • foster greater
traceability • enhance marketing of farm products • improve lease
arrangements and relationship with landlords • enhance the inherent
quality of farm products (e.g. protein level in bread-flour wheat) ---
Advantages of precision farming: Agronomical perspective: Use
agronomical practices by looking at specific requirements of crop.
Technical perspective: Allows efficient time management Environmental
perspective: Eco-friendly practices in crop Economical perspective:
Increases crop yield, quality and reduces cost of production by efficient
use of farm inputs, labour, water etc --Steps in Precision Farming I)
Identification and Assessment of Variability Grid soil sampling,, Yield map
,Crop scouting Use of precision technologies for assessing variability II)
Management of Variability Variable rate application Yield monitoring and
mapping Quantifying on farm variability and Flexibility Successfully
implemented precision farming in India 1) Tata Kisan Kendra (TKK) 2)
Tamil Nadu Precision Farming Project.---- Warehousing Warehouses are
scientific storage structures especially constructed for the protection of
the quantity and quality of stored products. Types of warehouse 1. On
the basis of Ownership a. Private warehouses: These are owned by
individuals, large business houses or wholesalers for the storage of their
own stocks. They also store the products of others. b. Public warehouses:
These are the warehouses, which are owned by the govt. and are meant
for the storage of goods. c. Bonded warehouses: These warehouses are
specially constructed at a seaport or an airport and accept imported
goods for storage till the payment of customs by the importer of goods.
These warehouses are licensed by the govt. for this purpose. The goods
stored in this warehouse are bonded goods. On the basis of Type of
Commodities Stored a. General Warehouses: These are ordinary
warehouses used for storage of most of food grains, fertilizers, etc. b.
Special Commodity Warehouses: These are warehouses, which are
specially constructed for the storage of specific commodities like cotton,
tobacco, wool and petroleum products. c. Refrigerated Warehouses:
These are warehouses in which temperature is maintained as per
requirements and are meant for such perishable commodities as
vegetables, fruits, fish, eggs and meat. Central warehousing corporation
(CWC) This corporation was established as a statutory body in New Delhi
on 2nd March 1957. -The Central Warehousing Corporation provides
safe and reliable storage facilities for about 120 agricultural and
industrial commodities. Functions ▪ To acquire and build go downs and
warehouses at suitable places in India. ▪ To run warehouses for the
storage of agricultural produce, seeds, fertilizers and notified
commodities for individuals, co-operatives and other institutions, ▪ To act
as an agent of the govt. for the purchase, sale, storage and distribution of
the above commodities. ▪ To arrange facilities for the transport of above
commodities. ▪ To subscribe to the share capital of state Warehousing
corporations and ▪ To carry out such other functions as may be
prescribed under the Act. --State Warehousing Corporations (SWCs)
Separate warehousing corporations were also set up in different States of
the Indian Union. The areas of operation of the State Warehousing
Corporations are centers of district importance. The total share capital of
the State Warehousing Corporations is contributed equally by the
concerned State Govt. and the Central Warehousing Corporation. Food
Corporation of India (FCI) Apart from CWC and SWCs, the Food
Corporation of India has also created storage facilities. The Food
Corporation of India is the single largest agency which has a capacity of
26.62 million tones. ---Agriculture Supply Chain Management: The
enormous losses of fruits and vegetables produced in the country are
mainly because of the lack of proper infrastructure for storage and
transportation under controlled conditions. Of late, Supply Chain
Management (SCM) is gaining importance due to globalization. A supply
chain is a set of three or more organizations linked directly by one or
more of the upstream or downstream flows of products, services,
finances, and information from a source to a customer. Supply chain
management, then, endorses a supply chain orientation, and involves
proactively managing the two-way movement and co-ordination of
goods, services, information and funds (i.e. the various flows) from raw
material through to end user. The changing lifestyle and open economy
have forced the manufacturers/suppliers to produce/supply quality
products. Several factors are driving an emphasis on supply chain
management.- First, the cost and availability of information resources
between entities in the supply chain allow easy linkages that eliminate
time delays in the network. Second, the level of competition in both
domestic and international markets requires organizations to be fast,
agile, and flexible. Third, customer expectations and requirements are
becoming much more stringent. So to satisfy the consumers, SCM system
should operate with the two main objectives timeliness and quality. The
Supply Chain Umbrella A large set of activities besides purchasing is part
of supply chain management. Each of these seemingly diverse activities is
part of a network that will define how efficiently and effectively goods
and information flow across a supply chain. The activities include : i.
Purchasing: Most organizations include purchasing as a major supply
chain activity since purchasing is the central focus. ii. Quality control:
Almost all organizations recognize the importance of supplier quality and
the need to prevent rather than simply detect quality problems.
Progressive organizations work directly with suppliers to develop proper
quality control procedures and processes. iii. Demand and supply
planning: Demand planning identifies forecasts of anticipated demand,
inventory adjustments, orders taken but not filled and spare part and
after market requirements. Supply planning is the process of taking
demand data and developing a supply, production, and logistics network
capable of satisfying demand requirements. iv. Material or inventory
control: The material group is often responsible for determining the
inventory level of finished goods required to support customer
requirements, which emphasizes the physical distribution (i.e., outbound
or downstream) side of the supply chain. The inventory control group is
often responsible for determining the inventory level of finished goods
required to support customer requirements, which emphasizes the
physical distribution (i.e., outbound or downstream) side of the supply
chain. v. Order processing: Order processing helps ensure that customer
receive material when and where they require it. It represents a link
between the producer and the external customer. vi. Production
planning, scheduling and control: Production planning, scheduling and
control involve determining a time-phased schedule or production,
developing short-term production schedules, and controlling work-in-
process production. vii. Warehousing / distribution: Warehousing /
distribution is particularly important for companies that produce
according to a forecast in anticipation of future sales. viii. Customer
service: Customer service includes a wide set of activities that attempt to
keep a customer satisfied with a product or service.