Nexus of Good: Anchoring the roots

Under the inspired leadership of Gaurav Goel, Founder and CEO of Samagra, the organisation was bestowed with the inaugural Nexus of Good Annual Award in 2022 for their contribution in improving governance through use of technology in Haryana. They have won the award again in 2024. On this occasion, it is for the work they have done in the field of agriculture in Odisha. The model they have put in place is a wonderful example of Nexus of Good, a model that can be replicated through public-private partnership.

The Krushi Samiksha Kendra (KSK) is India’s first Centralised Monitoring System for agriculture. Operationalised to address the complexities of agricultural service delivery, KSK leverages real-time data-driven governance to ensure proactive decision-making, accountability, and timely interventions. Built on the Decision Support System (DSS), the initiative represents a transformative step toward modernising agricultural operations in the state.

The need for centralised monitoring

The 80 lakh farmers in Odisha face numerous challenges, including pest infestations and unpredictable weather, which frequently lead to crop failures and financial distress. Compounding these issues is the fragmented nature of agricultural data—scattered across multiple platforms, often self-reported, and plagued with inconsistencies. This lack of reliable data impeded effective analysis, delayed policy formulation, and slowed emergency responses. The absence of structured feedback mechanisms further undermined farmer satisfaction and agricultural outcomes. This underscored the critical need for a centralised monitoring system capable of consolidating data, generating actionable insights, and enabling timely, targeted interventions.

Data-backed decision-making

The journey of data-backed decision making in agriculture in Odisha began with the Decision Support System (DSS) in 2017, a system that enables monitoring of agricultural operations, recording of scheme achievement and compliance to processes, and identification of issues being faced by a farmer. This laid the foundation for decentralised monitoring and review by equipping over 5,000 officials with tools to track agricultural schemes, monitor progress, and identify bottlenecks in real time.

Development of Centralised Monitoring Systems

The challenges induced by COVID-19 required governments across the world to develop and adopt novel approaches to streamlining service delivery and improving the accountability of officials in the face of adversity. One of the most impactful interventions identified was the Centralised Monitoring System, which is a data-driven mechanism that allows governments to track service delivery, process compliance, and citizen engagement in real-time.

Owing to the success of this model during COVID-19, different departments and ministries from the central and state governments in India have actively started pushing for this approach. These developments at the national level presented an ideal opportunity—combining the decentralised monitoring & observability enabled by the DSS with a centralised monitoring system to establish and embed a robust culture of data-backed decision making, review and monitoring, and accountability to form the Krushi Samiksha Kendra.

Building Krushi Samiksha Kendra

Work was initiated on KSK in April 2022, combining decentralised monitoring with a centralised framework to drive evidence-based governance. The following steps were undertaken to operationalise the system:

1. Identifying use cases and KPIs

To ensure impact, KSK focused on three primary use cases:

○ Programme implementation: Streamlining delivery of inputs, subsidies, and services to farmers.

○ Plant protection: Coordinating responses to environmental disruptions like pest outbreaks.

○ Policy reform: Using stakeholder feedback to refine policies and initiatives.

2. Revamping ADAPT DSS

A rigorous API integration exercise ensured that officials across levels had real-time access to relevant data, including scheme achievements, pest incidence, and weather conditions, through a single portal.

3. Nudges and escalations

Automated alerts via WhatsApp, calls, and emails nudged officials to address under-performance. Persistent issues were escalated to senior officials based on a defined matrix, ensuring accountability and timely resolution.

4. Dedicated state-level team

A specialised team of data analysts, call center agents, nodal officials, and tech experts was established to sustain and enhance the system.

5. Cascaded review meetings

A structured calendar of reviews ensured that every official was both reviewed by superiors and held accountable for monitoring their subordinates, fostering a culture of transparency and ownership.

Operational framework and impact

The Krushi Samiksha Kendra operates as a centralised hub for monitoring agricultural activities across Odisha’s 30 districts and 314 blocks. By synthesising data from multiple sources, KSK provides insights that enable informed decision-making, proactive issue identification, and targeted interventions.

Impact highlights:

1. Program implementation:

○ Improved recorded scheme achievements by ~40%.

○ Enhanced delivery of key schemes like KALIA (direct income transfers) and the Mahanadi Delta Rabi Crop Production Program.

2. Plant protection:

○ Identified and escalated 35+ pest outbreaks before they reached critical levels.

○ Disseminated real-time crop advisories during weather emergencies.

3. Policy reform:

○ Conducted 50+ hypothesis-driven surveys to gather feedback from farmers, producer organisations, and input dealers.

○ Enabled the refinement of policies such as seed pre-booking and agri-marketing initiatives.

4. Behavioral change:

○ Increased officials’ participation in departmental forums by ~30%.

○ Fostered a culture of data-driven governance and accountability.

5. Farmer empowerment:

○ Reached 80 lakh farmers, 90% of whom are small and marginal.

○ Equipped farmers with timely updates on plant protection techniques and certified inputs.

Sustainability and scalability

The Krushi Samiksha Kendra has been designed with sustainability and scalability at its core. Key processes such as cascaded reviews, systematic nudges, and regular data monitoring ensure that the system remains relevant and impactful in the long term.

1. Environmental sustainability:

By enabling precise monitoring of pest outbreaks and weather disruptions, KSK promotes sustainable farming practices and minimises environmental damage.

2. Economic sustainability:

The system reduces crop losses and enhances productivity, contributing to better financial outcomes for farmers and bolstering the state’s agricultural economy.

3. Social sustainability:

Improved service delivery and stakeholder engagement have strengthened trust between farmers and the government, fostering social cohesion.

4. Replicability:

The KSK model offers a blueprint for other states and sectors. Similar frameworks, such as Vidya Samiksha Kendra in education, demonstrate the versatility and potential for adaptation of centralised monitoring systems across domains.

The Krushi Samiksha Kendra embodies the core principles of evidence-based governance. By integrating real-time data analysis with proactive decision-making, it has streamlined service delivery and policy formulation. Its ability to identify and address issues before they turn into crises has reinforced its relevance and effectiveness. The initiative’s success in improving scheme implementation, stakeholder engagement, and emergency responsiveness underscores its objectivity and alignment with the purpose of empowering farmers and enhancing agricultural outcomes.

As India seeks to modernise its public service delivery mechanisms, the Krushi Samiksha Kendra stands out as a pioneering initiative that leverages technology and data to empower farmers, enhance productivity, and ensure inclusive growth.

Views expressed are personal