Agro SMS Service For Farmers

Lucknow, Feb 12 (IANS) From basic technical knowhow to information on advanced techniques in agriculture -- farmers from various states are registering for an SMS service through which their queries will be answered by scientists, an official said Saturday.
'It's been just over a month since the SMS service started,' Sanjay Kumar, a scientist with the Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CIMAP) Technology and Business Development, told reporters here.

'Today we have over 800 farmers from states like Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Bihar registering themselves for the agro advisory service,' he added.

'From basic technical knowhow to information on advanced techniques that can boost the production of aromatic and medicinal plants, are provided by us through the SMS service,' he said.

For availing the SMS service, farmers just need to register their mobile phone numbers.

'After the registration, any farmer can call on the helpline numbers - 0522-2718598, 2718595, with their query that is answered by a dedicated panel of CIMAP scientists through an SMS, later sent on the farmers' mobile,' Kumar said.

'As of now, the calls made by the farmers are not toll-free. Still, as soon we get a call from the farmers, we ask them to disconnect the line from their end. Later, we call them up and note down their queries,' he said.

'Thereafter, we respond to them through an SMS that is sent to their mobile number,' he added.

With the satisfactory response to the service, CIMAP officials said that in later phases the institute might introduce a toll-free service for the agro advisory.source

TRAI want details on growth of MVAS from OPERATORS

Telecom regulator Trai on Friday sought comments from various mobile operators for the growth of value added services that include policy framework and support infrastructure to usher in inclusive growth.

Industry body Assocham has released a study paper, titled 'Mobile Value Added Services (MVAS)-a vehicle to usher in inclusive growth and bridge the digital divide' on which Trai is seeking comments from various service operators by February 11, Telecom regulator said in a statement.

The paper has identified issues for the growth of MVAS industry, including policy framework, support infrastructure and high equilibrium ecosystem.

At present, the contribution of VAS to the total revenue of Indian telecom operators is just 9-10 per cent, which is significantly lower when compared with developed markets.

The potential for VAS revenues appears all the more significant at the present juncture, given that India is set to introduce 3G services nationwide, a standard that allows operators to offer wide range of advanced services.

As the telecom industry sees a rapid decline in voice tariffs, it is looking at services beyond standard voice calls or MVAS to propel it to the next level of growth. With mobile penetration expected to go up to nearly 100 per cent by 2015 and the advent of 3G, MVAS revenues are expected to grow to Rs 48,000 crore.

Some of these services are those in the 'Utility MVAS' category-- MVAS which seeks to digitally empower citizens by providing efficient access to essential information and services and foster inclusive growth.

Utility MVAS includes segments like M-Infotainment, M-Connectivity, M-Enterprise, M-Commerce, M-Health and M-Agriculture.

While there are plenty of challenges that face the Utility MVAS space today, the opportunities are tremendous, given the mobile phone's growing reach and the advancement of technology including the foray of 3G.

The reach and penetration of mobile phones can ensure the delivery of a large number of services in a cost-effective, fast and seamless manner even without physical access as is seen from such initiatives around the world.

This makes mobiles phones the perfect medium to deliver a variety of content and services, or as referred to in popular parlance-MVAS-to the Indian population.