Reuters launches SMS crop service for farmers

News and information company Reuters Group Plc has launched an exclusive SMS service for farmers in Pune that will provide them with vital information on crop prices, weather and other related issues.

Pune, Oct 5 : News and information company Reuters Group Plc has launched an exclusive SMS service for farmers in Pune that will provide them with vital information on crop prices, weather and other related issues.

"By giving them information that is upto date and relevant, they will be able to choose when to go to market and when to harvest their crops. We will be able to increase their productivity and increase the profitability of their businesses," said Rosemary Martin of the Reuters Group.

Reuters Market Light, a short messaging service costing 60 rupees a month, is currently available in Maharashtra and has been on trial since April this year.

Reuters Market Light Managing Director Amit Mehra said the company aimed to turn the service into a sustainable business in a tight timeframe and planned to expand beyond Maharashtra.

Plans were also on to extend the service from just a mere information provider into a direct connection between farmers and retailers to facilitate trade, he added.

"We have further plans to try and connect the farmers directly with buyers through a mobile phone or any such other system. We would try to enable the sale of their produce, instead of just providing them with information," said Mehra.

The farmers seem really happy at the prospect of getting all the required information at the touch of their fingers.

"The service will be very helpful to the farmers, by providing them with latest prices of fruits and vegetables. Farmers will be really benefited from it by having knowledge about the commodities beforehand," said Sameer Nikam, a farmer.

So far, over 7,500 farmers have signed up for the information services in either English or Marathi, Reuters said in a statement.

India also has some of the cheapest call rates in the world, with costs as low as one U.S. cent a minute.

Indian mobile providers have been signing up users at more than eight million a month and total wireless users number at more than 200 million.

Mobile penetration is highest in cities, but growth is now coming from small towns and rural areas.

Nearly two-thirds of India's billion-plus population depends on agriculture for a living, and with only 40 percent of its farmland irrigated and markets often distant, farmers are vulnerable to shifts in prices or weather conditions.

ANI