From automated farm tractors to exam paper grading, AI boosts efficiency for some in India
KARNAL, India (AP) — Farmer Bir Virk put the vehicle into automatic mode by touching the iPad next to the steering wheel of his tractor. The machine moved forward and began harvesting potatoes on its own in the fields of Karnal, a city in northern India.
About 145 kilometers (90 miles) away in the nation’s capital, New Delhi, educator Swetank Pandey used similar automation at his coaching academy. It used algorithms to scan and grade candidates’ handwritten exam papers for India’s competitive civil services.
In both cases the same invisible hand was at work: artificial intelligence.
From farms to classrooms, AI is rapidly emerging as a tool that will enable many Indians to increase productivity and save time, costs and labour. Early adopters like Virk and Pandey say the technology is helping them increase productivity as they test AI’s potential to find solutions in the workplace.
“I can farm very efficiently and I am very happy to be doing what my grandfather and father did. Now I am carrying the tradition forward with the right technology,” Virk said.
India tests AI scale
While the use of artificial intelligence is growing rapidly across the world, the technology is also steadily gaining ground in India as businesses, startups and individuals experiment with new ways to increase productivity.
The Indian government is also launching national initiatives to fund research and train workers on AI. This effort is being showcased this week, hosted by New Delhi five-day artificial intelligence summitThe event was attended by heads of state and high-level technology CEOs.
With nearly one billion internet users, India has also become a key focal point for global technology companies to scale their AI businesses in one of the world’s fastest-growing digital markets.
Last December, Microsoft announced 17.5 billion dollar investment More than four years to expand cloud and AI infrastructure in India. followed 15 billion dollar investment from Google It has been around for more than five years, including plans for the first artificial intelligence center in the country.
“There are some good use cases starting. There are now scaling platforms that integrate AI into them,” said Sangeeta Gupta, senior vice president of NASSCOM, a leading organization representing India’s technology industry.
But India’s adoption of AI has its own limitations.
Country still lags behind in developing its own large-scale AI model US-based OpenAI or China’s DeepSeekIt highlights challenges such as limited access to advanced semiconductor chips, data centers, and hundreds of local languages that can be learned.
While technology companies increase their spending on artificial intelligence training and reskilling, those who cannot adapt being pushed out. Tata Consultancy Services, the country’s largest private employer, cut more than 12,000 jobs last year amid a rapid shift towards artificial intelligence.
But at the same time, people like Virk and Pandey say: AI tools They are already making their jobs faster and more efficient.
Precision agriculture through artificial intelligence
Farmer Virk was first introduced to AI-powered agricultural technology five years ago while studying and working in the United States. When he returned to India in 2021, he imported the system from a Swedish company and has been using it on his farm for the last few years.
Automatic tractor can sow seeds, spray fertilizer and harvest crops. The system costs about $3,864 and combines a steering motor, satellite signals that help the tractor move with precision, and AI-powered software that converts the data into motion.
It also logs errors and uploads them to a cloud platform where the software company analyzes the data and sends relevant updates back to the machine.
“Technology and intelligence play a big role in this. The tractor runs in a straight line. It maintains an accuracy of 0.01 centimeters (0.004 inches),” Virk said.
He said that his artificial intelligence-supported tractor reduced working time by half.
“The most special feature is that it can learn on its own,” he said.
Artificial intelligence enters India’s famous exam factories
Pandey, an educator, teaches at a civil services coaching centre, an industry known for fierce competition. Millions of young Indians compete for civil service jobs every year and coaching centers undergo numerous tests, evaluations and revisions.
Artificial intelligence makes it easier to manage this workload, Pandey said.
Using major language models like ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude, along with other automation tools, Pandey and his team scan and evaluate answer sheets, create targeted study material and structure syllabuses for candidates.
Pandey said the technology helps perform repetitive tasks and allows evaluation of tens of thousands of answer sheets in as little as 20 to 25 minutes.
“If you have a better machine, a larger system, you can do it in two minutes,” he said.
The coaching academy uses a hybrid model for now. AI helps with assessments and teachers review the output, improving both speed and quality.
Pandey said AI often produces study materials that students find more relatable than what teachers designed.
“AI can give us a basic idea of what the student is doing now and what they need to do next to achieve their goals,” he said.
——
Saaliq reported from New Delhi.
