New Delhi: In a significant move aimed at empowering farmers through technology, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday announced the launch of Bharat Vistar, a multilingual, AI-driven platform designed to integrate India’s agricultural ecosystem and provide farmers with real-time advisory support. The announcement was made during the presentation of Union Budget 2026–27 in Parliament.
Sitharaman emphasized the government’s commitment to farmer welfare, noting that the country’s agricultural sector stands to benefit from technology-led solutions that reduce risk, enhance productivity, and provide actionable insights.
“Bharat Vistar – Virtually Integrated System to access Agricultural Resources. I propose to launch Bharat Vistar, a multilingual AI tool that will integrate the agri-stack portals and the ICAR package on agricultural practices with AI systems,” she said, underlining the tool’s role in bridging traditional knowledge with modern technology.
The Bharat Vistar platform aims to consolidate various government agri-portals, research packages from the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), and AI-powered analytics into a single, accessible ecosystem. By leveraging AI, the tool will provide personalized guidance on crop selection, soil management, pest control, irrigation practices, and weather-related risk mitigation, helping farmers make data-driven decisions.
Experts say that Bharat Vistar could mark a paradigm shift in India’s agri-tech landscape, enabling small and marginal farmers to access expert insights in regional languages, thus reducing dependency on intermediaries and improving overall farm efficiency.
The initiative reflects a broader strategy by the government to modernize India’s agricultural sector, combining digital innovation, AI analytics, and grassroots knowledge to enhance productivity, sustainability, and farmer income in the face of climate risks and market fluctuations.