Kulgam, Dec 30 (KNO): In a strategic effort to enhance agricultural practices with real-time weather insights and soil analysis, a sophisticated automatic weather station has been deployed in South Kashmir's Kulgam district, officials said on Saturday.
The installation of the weather station is part of the Holistic Agriculture Development Programme (HADP), operational at Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) at Pombai area of Kulgam.
Talking to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), Manzoor Ahmad Ganai, Senior Scientist and Head at KVK Pombai Kulgam, said that the weather station has primarily been installed to benefit the farming community.
“The multifunctional weather station offers comprehensive real-time updates on various factors, including wind direction, temperature, humidity, wind speed, soil temperature, soil moisture, solar radiation, solar intensity and insights into pest activity,” he said.
Highlighting the station's significance, he said, the primary focus of the station is on pest detection, providing farmers with advance notice of potential threats in their environment.
He said that those who have registered with Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) receive good quality in farming, adding that in the event the spray is washed away by rain, it may lead to scab and fungal infections attacking the orchards.
“The proactive approach of the weather station enables farmers to make timely decisions, such as scheduling orchard sprays based on weather forecasts, preventing economic losses due to the high costs and labor associated with pesticides,” he said.
He said those who have registered with Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) receive good quality in farming, adding that in the event that the spray is washed away by rain, it may lead to scab and fungal infections attacking the orchards.
Manzoor said that the weather station is a government initiative and people should benefit from such development. “There are 29 HADP projects, and people should avail themselves of the benefits of these projects. Last time, we demonstrated a drone based on sensors. The drone automatically sprays the areas that require spraying.”—(KNO)