Customized digital advice can help farmers manage crop loss and weather shocks: Evidence from PxD’s work in Odisha
From 2018–2022, PxD and the Government of Odisha (GoO), co-designed and scaled Ama Krushi, a free, two-way voice-based agricultural advisory service. Ama Krushi provides customized and real-time agricultural advice, including weather-based advisories, pest and disease management guidance, and best practices for soil health and nutrient management. Ama Krushi was conceptualized as a Build-Operate-Transfer program, and PxD fully transitioned the service to the government in 2022. Today, the service—recently renamed as Krushi Samruddhi—reaches close to 7 million farmers, and is expanding into new delivery channels and value chains. Insights from this transition process are now publicly available here.
To assess the impact of Ama Krushi, PxD and GoO conducted a randomized evaluation of the service; the evaluation focused on rice producers in five districts, and measured farmer engagement, adoption of improved practices, and productivity outcomes. Results from our working paper released in 2024 show:
- Overall improvements in adoption and knowledge
- Large reduction in the likelihood of severe crop loss, which was defined as farmers losing more than 50% of their crop: Farmers with access to the service saw a 10% reduction in severe crop loss compared to those without access. This was driven by a 25% reduction in losses due to pests, diseases, and weather events (other than floods).
- Concentrated impact in areas hit by weather shocks: In areas hit by excess rainfall, farmers with access to Ama Krushi harvested 9.4% more than farmers without access to the service, with estimated profit gains of $30–48 per farmer (or roughly 14–30% of profits) in just one agricultural season. This impact nearly doubled among farmers who reported low yields before Ama Krushi was introduced. A similar increase in harvest and a 21% reduction in severe crop loss was observed in Year 2 among farmers with access to Ama Krushi in areas hit by inadequate rainfall.
One key advantage of digital services like Ama Krushi is the extremely low delivery cost. We estimate that, for every dollar invested in the service, Ama Krushi generates benefits to farmers in the range of $12-19.
Importantly, the true impact of Ama Krushi is likely substantially larger than the impact measured for rice in this evaluation. The service provides advice on many crops in addition to rice, throughout the year. The majority of Ama Krushi users also report sharing advice with neighbors and friends; this suggests that farmers who don’t have direct access to the service may benefit from active users of the service. In addition, the returns to investing in services like Ama Krushi can grow over time through improved customization, and as technology improves.
“I have been using Ama Krushi service since a few years. I regularly receive weekly information on high yielding varieties, seed treatment, nutrient management and pest management. I have utilized the information in my crop and yield was very good. Last year the paddy yield was 25-26 Quintal per acre. A few of my neighbours are also using Ama Krushi for weekly information on different crops. Ama Krushi service is very useful to us.”
“At the time of heavy rainfall and cyclone the weather forecasting and weather-based information helped me a lot to protect my crop from excess rain and pest & diseases. As I received information from Ama Krushi on cyclone I have made drainage arrangements in all four sides of my field before the cyclone and heavy rains arrived so my field was drained from excess water very fast and hence I experienced only 20-30% of crop loss while other farmers in my village have experienced up to 60% of crop loss due to cyclone and heavy rain. My paddy crop was better so I was happy but still was sad as I see other farmers have lost very high. I am listening to the information and will keep listening in future.“
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