Chief Minister Vishnu Dev Sai of Chhattisgarh on Monday, 15 June 2026 interacted with progressive farmers and 'Drone Didis' — women drone pilots from self-help groups — through a special programme called 'Kisan Samvad' (Farmer Dialogue) broadcast on DD Chhattisgarh, the state's public television channel. The session focused on experiences of advanced farming at reduced costs using nano fertilisers, modern technologies, and agricultural innovations.

Context

The 'Kisan Samvad' programme brought together farmers who have adopted cutting-edge agricultural practices and women members of self-help groups trained as drone operators. CM Sai listened to their first-hand accounts of how nano fertilisers and drone-based application have lowered input costs while improving crop yields. The broadcast format allowed the interaction to reach a wide rural audience across the state.

The Chief Minister's Office stated that the 'Sushasan Sarkar' (Good Governance Government) is 'continuously working to make farming more profitable and technology-driven,' adding that the administration is 'fully committed to increasing farmers' incomes and the holistic development of the agriculture sector.'

Policy Backdrop

The 'Drone Didis' initiative trains women from self-help groups as licensed drone pilots, enabling them to carry out fertiliser and pesticide spraying services for neighbouring farmers — generating income for the women while reducing manual labour costs for cultivators. This state-level programme aligns with the central government's push under agricultural extension missions to integrate drone technology into routine farm operations.

Nano fertilisers — including IFFCO's nano urea, commercially rolled out in 2021 — are a central pillar of India's effort to cut conventional urea consumption and improve nutrient-use efficiency. Chhattisgarh's promotion of these inputs through a public broadcaster reaches smallholder and tribal farming communities who may otherwise have limited access to agri-tech information.

Chhattisgarh has a predominantly agrarian economy with a large tribal and smallholder farming population. Agriculture contributes significantly to the state's gross domestic product, making farmer income enhancement a politically and economically critical priority for the Sai government, which assumed office in December 2023.

Stakeholders and Impact

Progressive farmers who participated in the dialogue represent an emerging group of early adopters who have moved beyond conventional farming to embrace precision inputs and mechanised application. Their testimonials, shared on a state public broadcaster, serve as peer-level demonstration for millions of other cultivators in the state.

The Drone Didis occupy a dual role: as beneficiaries of skilling programmes and as service providers to the wider farming community. Their inclusion in a Chief Minister-level interaction signals official recognition of women-led agri-tech entrepreneurship as a development model. Similar linkages between women's empowerment, drone training, and farmer outreach have been pursued in states such as Madhya Pradesh and Telangana.

What's Next

The Chhattisgarh government's stated commitment to technology-driven agriculture will be tested in the 2026-27 state budget, where allocations for drone procurement, operator training, and nano-input subsidies will indicate the scale of follow-through. Integration with the central Digital Agriculture Mission dashboard could further consolidate farm-level data from the state.

As India's national target of substantially raising farmer incomes remains a benchmark for state governments, Chhattisgarh's combination of public broadcaster outreach, women-led drone services, and nano-fertiliser promotion positions the state within a broader national pattern of precision agriculture adoption — one where the pace of scale-up in the coming cropping seasons will determine real-world impact.