Raipur — In a bid to sharpen the precision of this year’s kharif crop evaluation, the Chhattisgarh government is turning to unmanned aerial vehicles. The conventional girdawari exercise, slated for completion in October, will now be bolstered by drone‑generated maps that are cross‑verified by revenue officers on the field.
From sky‑high imagery to on‑site validation
Compact UAVs are sweeping the state’s major agricultural belts, capturing centimetre‑level photographs of plot outlines, crop patterns and the total sown area. These snapshots are transformed into a digital ledger that logs the exact location of each cultivated variety.
At the same time, revenue teams are making ground visits to compare their observations with the aerial records. Any inconsistency between the drone‑derived data and the field reality is flagged for deeper investigation.
Real‑time oversight of the girdawari workflow
Senior officials are monitoring the survey’s progress closely, reviewing reports submitted by field crews. When a mismatch emerges—such as a crop listed in official registers that is absent on the ground—the responsible officers must account for the discrepancy.
This two‑tiered methodology is intended to prune errors from the state’s crop database and deliver a more trustworthy snapshot of agricultural output.
Detecting illegal opium and cannabis farms
The aerial sweep is not confined to legal kharif crops. Law‑enforcement agencies are also scanning for signs of illicit opium and cannabis cultivation. When drone imagery or a field inspection hints at suspicious planting, a focused ground raid is organized before any enforcement action proceeds.
Officials contend that drone‑based mapping can quickly expose hard‑to‑reach pockets, enabling a swifter response to potential illegal farms.
Scope of the sowing ambition
Chhattisgarh aims to sow kharif crops across 48.69 lakh hectares this season. Satellite‑aided estimates as of 22 September indicated that 48.44 lakh hectares were already under cultivation.
Rice continues to dominate the kharif basket, while maize, kodo, kutki, arhar, moong, groundnut and ramtil also hold significant acreage across the state.
The final round of girdawari in October is expected to lock in the definitive area allocated to each crop.
Why exact data matters to farmers
Precise crop statistics underpin a host of government schemes—crop‑insurance payouts, disaster relief, compensation and other farmer‑focused programmes. When the crop type and cultivated area are accurately recorded, authorities can pinpoint eligible beneficiaries and channel support more efficiently.
By marrying drone technology with traditional field verification, the administration seeks to forge a robust, transparent crop database that ensures public assistance reaches the right hands.
