Kiran's Drone and the Farmer Who Said It Was a Toy

The first time Kiran flew his drone over the paddy fields outside his village near Tenali, Venkateswara Rao garu stood on the bund with his arms folded and laughed.

"Children's toy," he said loudly, to nobody in particular. "My father sprayed this land with a hand pump. I have sprayed it with a hand pump for forty years. That thing will blow the medicine into the next village."

Kiran, twenty-six, with a commerce degree and a remote pilot certificate he had trained for in Vijayawada, did not argue. Most of the older farmers had watched his demonstrations with the same folded arms.

He had bought the drone with a loan through a farmers' group and now sprayed for neighbours on custom hire, charging by the acre. Some weeks he was busy from sunrise. Some weeks nobody called.

Rao garu called him in the third week of the rabi season, though not happily.

Leaf folder damage was spreading across his five acres of paddy. His usual spray man had gone to Hyderabad, the two labourers he found wanted double the wage, and after unseasonal rain the field was so soft that walking it with a tank on the back was exhausting. The officer had told him which product to use, and it had to go on within the week.

"Do half," he told Kiran. "The other half we will spray the proper way. Then I will see."

How does an agri drone spray a field?

An agri drone is a battery-powered multirotor with a small tank and spray nozzles. It flies a few metres above the crop along a path mapped in advance, releasing a measured, low-volume spray, while the downward air from its rotors pushes the droplets into the canopy.

Kiran walked the boundary of Rao garu's field, marked it on his controller and checked for electric lines and the palm trees along the canal. He mixed the officer's recommended product at the label dose in the smaller volume of water used for drone spraying. The drone flew its rows on its own, returned when the tank or battery ran low, and resumed where it stopped.

The two and a half acres were done before the labourers on the other half had finished their first tank.

Rao garu stopped laughing somewhere around the second battery change.

What are the real benefits of drone spraying?

The biggest benefits are speed, far less contact between the person and the chemical, and much less water per acre. Drones can also spray fields that are too wet or too tall to walk through comfortably.

• Speed. An acre can be covered in minutes rather than hours, which matters when a pest is spreading or rain is coming.
• Less exposure. The pilot stands at the edge of the field instead of walking through the spray cloud.
• Less water. Drones use a low-volume spray, which helps where water has to be carried to the field.
• Even coverage on open, regular fields, without the gaps of tired hand spraying.

Two days later, the leaf folder damage had stopped spreading on both halves. Rao garu did not admit anything that day. But he kept the cost slip, and noticed that the drone half had cost him less trouble and less water.

Where do drones fall short?

Drones are not the answer for every field or every spray. Know the limits before you hire:

• Wind. In strong wind, fine droplets drift onto neighbouring fields, canals and houses. Good pilots stop flying when the wind picks up.
• Battery life. Each battery lasts a short flight, so the pilot needs several charged batteries or a generator in the field.
• Small and irregular plots. Tiny fields with trees, wires or houses around them take more setup than they are worth, and are riskier to fly.
• Thick canopies. In dense crops, the spray may not reach the lower leaves and the underside of leaves as well as a careful hand spray. For pests that live low on the plant, ask the officer whether a drone suits that spray.
• Not every product. Only some pesticides are approved for drone application, and a product approved for hand spraying is not automatically approved for drones.

What rules apply to drone spraying in India?

Agricultural drones fall under the national drone rules administered by the DGCA, and drone pesticide spraying has its own operating procedures from the agriculture ministry. Rules are updated, so treat this as a starting point:

1. Certified pilot. The person flying should hold a remote pilot certificate from a DGCA-authorised training organisation.
2. Registered drone. The drone should be registered with a unique identification number.
3. Allowed airspace. Some areas, such as those near airports and sensitive sites, need permission or are off-limits.
4. Approved pesticides only. Use products approved for drone application for that crop, at the approved dose. Check the current list with your agriculture department, because approvals are being added and changed.
5. Safety around people and animals. Neighbours should be told before spraying, and people and livestock kept away.

Is there government support for agri drones?

Yes. Central and state schemes have offered support for buying drones to farmer producer organisations, custom hiring centres and some institutions, and a central scheme has supported drones for women's self-help groups. The amounts, eligibility and which schemes are open change often, so ask your district agriculture office or the official farm mechanisation portal for what is currently available.

For most small farmers, the practical route is hiring, from a pilot like Kiran, a custom hiring centre or an FPO.

How to hire a drone sprayer: a checklist

Rates per acre vary by area, crop and season, so ask two or three operators before you decide. Then check:

• Is the pilot certified, and is the drone registered?
• Will he use a product approved for drone spraying on your crop, at the label dose?
• Does he check wind and stop when it is too strong?
• Will he map your field boundary and warn your neighbours first?
• Does he spray in the early morning or late afternoon, when it is calmer?
• Who is responsible if the drone damages anything?

And before you hire anyone, make sure you need to spray at all. Rao garu now photographs a damaged leaf in Mapis Farming first, to check what the problem is likely to be before calling the officer, the shop or the pilot. He checks the local weather advice for wind and rain before fixing the spray day, and he logs each spray, with date and product, in his input records.

What changed for Rao garu

He did not become a drone enthusiast, and he still uses a hand sprayer for small patches. But for big sprays on his paddy, when labour is short and the field is wet, he calls Kiran now. Last month, on the same bund where he had laughed, he asked whether his grandson could learn to fly one.

If you are curious about other ways technology watches a crop from above, read how satellite NDVI crop monitoring works, and how to identify crop disease from a phone photo before you spray.

Frequently asked questions

How does drone spraying work in agriculture?

An agri drone carries a small tank and nozzles and flies a few metres above the crop along a mapped path. It sprays a measured, low-volume mix, and the air from its rotors pushes droplets into the canopy. A trained pilot plans the route, mixes the approved product and monitors the flight.

Is drone spraying better than manual spraying?

It is much faster, uses less water and keeps the operator away from the chemical, so it suits large, open fields and urgent sprays. Manual spraying can be better for small plots, spot treatments and pests low in a thick canopy. Many farmers use both, depending on the field and the problem.

Which pesticides can be sprayed with a drone?

Only pesticides approved for drone application on that crop should be used, at the approved dose. A product approved for hand spraying is not automatically approved for drones. Check the current list with your agriculture department or officer, because approvals are updated.

Do I need a licence to fly an agricultural drone?

The person flying the drone should hold a remote pilot certificate from a DGCA-authorised training organisation, and the drone should be registered. Rules on airspace and operations also apply. Check the latest DGCA and agriculture ministry guidelines before flying or hiring.

How much does drone spraying cost per acre?

The cost varies by area, crop, season and operator, so there is no single rate. Ask two or three pilots or custom hiring centres for their per-acre charge and compare it with your labour cost and time. Government support for drones is mainly aimed at FPOs, custom hiring centres and groups rather than individual small farmers.