Unpredictable and Destructive Weather (Adaptation and Resilience)

Problem Statement

Increasing frequency of extreme weather events (heat waves, unseasonal rain, high winds) critically disrupts crop cycles, leads to total crop failure, and causes significant volatility in farmer incomes. Farmers lack adequate tools to proactively mitigate these weather-related stresses.

Innovation Opportunities

• Climate-Resilient Crop Management Technologies: Development of automated micro-shelters, intelligent fogging/misting systems, or low-cost passive cooling technologies for high-value crops to manage heat stress.
• Stress-Mitigation Bio-inputs (Biostimulants): Research and commercialisation of affordable, highly effective biological inputs (e.g., microbial consortia, plant extracts) that enhance the crop's tolerance to drought, salinity, and heat.
• Integrated Weather-Linked Advisory Systems: Systems that combine hyperlocal weather alerts with specific, actionable, and timely field operation recommendations (e.g., 'Postpone spraying,' 'Harden seedlings,' 'Install windbreaks').

Use Case Example

Following an alert for a sudden heatwave, a banana farmer receives a recommendation via the app to apply a specific biostimulant solution and initiate scheduled overhead sprinklers to mitigate thermal stress.