The World Economic Forum (WEF) in its latest report stated that drones have the potential to be the harbinger of 'new age technology-led transformation' of Indian agriculture. Discuss. (Answer in 150 words)

WEF has pointed out the use of new age technology like drones can add value of $100b per year to Indian GDP. Advantages of using drones: i Streamlining schemes - using drone photography, drones can help farmers create accurate maps for schemes like PMFBY ii Effective delivery - drones can transform daily agricultural activity - pest monitoring, delivery of fertilisers, livestock iii Land survey & land mapping involving effective Digital Land Records Mapping

iv Precision agriculture - to improve overall crop yield by data driven variable rate prescription. v Livestock monitoring - using thermal sensors to find lost animals etc. Concerns associated with use of drones: i High initial investment - majority of agricultural drones used for surveying requires huge upfront grant ii Weather dependent drones - due to difficulty in windy/rainy conditions iii Unskilled end users - drones require specialised skills & knowledge to translate into useful information. Indian agricultural sector will witness significant boost through AI enabled drone technology collaboration with like minded countries like Israel. Should be the way forward.