Adept in drone operation for farming operation, this rural woman carves a niche for herself
The Hindu
S. Sangeetha from Sirukudal village in Perambalur district transforms her life by operating drones for farming operations.
Thirty-five -year-old S. Sangeetha from Sirukudal village in Perambalur district had seen drones used during temple car festivals until some months ago. Today, she is adept in operating a drone all by herself for farming operations, which has changed her life completely.
Farmers of her village and those nearby regularly seek her assistance to spray fertilizers for their crops using a drone at Sirukudal and its neighbouring villages.
A mother of three children and having studied only up to Plus Two, Sangeetha’s expertise in handing the drone became a reality seven months ago, thanks to the training that she received from Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative Limited (IFFCO) in Chennai. Sangeetha, a homemaker and a member of the Ooty Rose self-help group in her village, was among the groups in Tamil Nadu chosen by IFFCO to impart training in operating the drone for farm operations under the central sector ‘Namo Drone Didi’ scheme.
After completion of training, Sangeetha received a drone along with a battery run vehicle free of cost from IFFCO to enable her to take the equipment to farm lands for spraying fertilizers. The organisation also helped her in getting a licence to operate the drone.
Ever since she received the hi-tech equipment seven months ago, Sangeetha says she has covered around 1,000 acres of farm lands in and around Sirukudal village to spray fertilizers using the drone. The equipment for spraying fertilizer has been mainly used for maize, says Sangeetha.
Maize is one of the major crop in Perambalur district.
The operation to spray fertilizers such as nano urea and nano DAP using the drone takes only five minutes to cover one acre. The tariff charged from the farmers for using the drone is around ₹400 for one acre. The device has a 10-litre capacity tank in which fertilizer mixed with water is filled up before spraying.
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