ICAR–DWR Organized Live Webcast of National Launch of BHARAT-VISTAAR

The ICAR–DWR, Jabalpur, organized a live webcast of the national launch of BHARAT-VISTAAR on 17 February 2026, enabling scientists, staff, and stakeholders to witness a landmark initiative in the domain of digital agriculture. BHARAT-VISTAAR, a multilingual AI-based conversational advisory system for the agriculture sector, was officially launched at Jaipur with the objective of strengthening agricultural extension services through advanced digital technologies.

The live telecast at ICAR–DWR engaged 78 participants, including 23 women and 55 men. The programme was organized to observe the historic launch and to enhance understanding of the role of artificial intelligence in improving agricultural advisory, knowledge dissemination, and decision-support services in the country. The national programme was formally launched by the Shri. Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Hon’ble Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare. Addressing the gathering, Shri Chouhan stated that BHARAT-VISTAAR represents the beginning of a new agricultural revolution, which will enable farmers to access information related to crops, weather, fertilizers, and markets directly on their mobile phones through AI-enabled platforms.

He further highlighted that BHARAT-VISTAAR will function as a 24×7 digital agriculture expert through text-based chatbot interaction as well as a voice-enabled AI assistant named “Bharati,” capable of interacting with farmers in multiple languages using simple and farmer-friendly language. Live interactions between farmers and the voice-enabled AI assistant were also demonstrated during the launch event at Jaipur, showcasing the platform’s practical applicability and user-centric design. At ICAR–DWR, the programme was presided over by the Hon’ble Director, Dr. J. S. Mishra, and coordinated by Dr. Jamaludheen A., Scientist, ICAR–DWR.