<p>Researchers at IIT Kharagpur have developed an advanced weather forecast system to help farmers in agricultural activities and reduce climatic risks, an official said on Saturday.</p>.<p>The institute in collaboration with the India Meteorological Department started offering an agro-advisory to cultivators to improve their production in different weather conditions, the IIT-KGP spokesperson said.</p>.<p>Sponsored by the Ministry of Earth Sciences, two projects - 'Gramin Krishi Mausam Sewa' and 'Forecasting Agricultural output using Space, Agrometeorology and Land- based observations' - provide weather information to farmers to improve their economic return, the official said.</p>.<p>"The agro-advisory offers crop selection, planting time, land preparation, input management and yield. It is based on future weather and land characteristics of a specific location," agricultural and food engineering department's professor Dilip Kumar Swain said.</p>.<p>Farmers get awareness on managing inputs such as fertiliser, irrigation and pesticide every week throughout the cropping season.</p>.<p>"Based on a five-day weather forecast, the agro- advisory is prepared on Tuesday and Friday every week and sent to farmers' cell phones, he said.</p>.<p>The advisory is being sent in Bengali to about three lakh farmers of West Medinipur, Jhargram, Bankura, Birbhum, and Purulia in West Bengal.</p>.<p>Using the advisory, they can protect their crop from extreme weather events and reduce production cost by need- based irrigation, fertiliser and pesticide applications, the professor said.</p>.<p>IIT Kharagpur director professor Virendra Kumar Tewari said, "Besides sending the agro-advisory, we also conduct training and awareness programmes regularly in villages on organic and integrated farming and advanced production technology for sustainable agricultural growth." </p>
<p>Researchers at IIT Kharagpur have developed an advanced weather forecast system to help farmers in agricultural activities and reduce climatic risks, an official said on Saturday.</p>.<p>The institute in collaboration with the India Meteorological Department started offering an agro-advisory to cultivators to improve their production in different weather conditions, the IIT-KGP spokesperson said.</p>.<p>Sponsored by the Ministry of Earth Sciences, two projects - 'Gramin Krishi Mausam Sewa' and 'Forecasting Agricultural output using Space, Agrometeorology and Land- based observations' - provide weather information to farmers to improve their economic return, the official said.</p>.<p>"The agro-advisory offers crop selection, planting time, land preparation, input management and yield. It is based on future weather and land characteristics of a specific location," agricultural and food engineering department's professor Dilip Kumar Swain said.</p>.<p>Farmers get awareness on managing inputs such as fertiliser, irrigation and pesticide every week throughout the cropping season.</p>.<p>"Based on a five-day weather forecast, the agro- advisory is prepared on Tuesday and Friday every week and sent to farmers' cell phones, he said.</p>.<p>The advisory is being sent in Bengali to about three lakh farmers of West Medinipur, Jhargram, Bankura, Birbhum, and Purulia in West Bengal.</p>.<p>Using the advisory, they can protect their crop from extreme weather events and reduce production cost by need- based irrigation, fertiliser and pesticide applications, the professor said.</p>.<p>IIT Kharagpur director professor Virendra Kumar Tewari said, "Besides sending the agro-advisory, we also conduct training and awareness programmes regularly in villages on organic and integrated farming and advanced production technology for sustainable agricultural growth." </p>