https://indianmasterminds.com

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

‘Treepedia’ for the Farmers

In what has emerged as major help to the farmers of Tamil Nadu, IFS officer Sudha Ramen has played a key role in development of an app which provide them vital information about various plant species to grow in their fields.
Indian Masterminds Stories

Something as ubiquitous as a plant often escapes our attention, just like the air we breathe. We tend to take both for granted. But the plant kingdom is no smaller than the animal world. There is issue, however, for the farmers. As most plants grow well according to the soil and climatic conditions, an ordinary farmer is often clueless as to which species to grow and which to avoid. 

The app has all the information about plant species and can be downloaded from playstore

To make things easier for the farmers, the Tamil Nadu government had developed a unique app ‘Treepedia’. The brain behind the app, which is essentially an encyclopedia on trees and plants, is IFS officer Sudha Ramen. Currently posted as Deputy Conservator of Forests in Tamil Nadu, Ms. Ramen mentioned that she designed the app with the help of her team members. In a conversation with Indian Masterminds, she talked about how the app was developed and the challenges she faced during its creation. 

Bridging the Gap between Lab and Land 

`Treepedia’ is an app which helps the farmers to easily choose the species for plantation in their respective areas. . It was developed by Tamil Forest department under Tamil Nadu Innovative initiatives schemes and the proposal was given by Ms. Ramen. However, the story behind the development of the app goes back to the days when she was getting her training in the forest academy.

 Before joining the Forest services, Ms Ramen was working with Wipro and she learned forestry only after getting selected as an IFS officer. 

The brain behind Treepedia Ms. Ramen with her team

As she said, “during my training period, I learned about various species of plants and their benefits if planted in farm forestry model. It was little shocking for me to know that there are lots of information available in books and research papers but not easily accessible to the farmers or common people. I realized that there is a huge gap between lab to land and by minimizing it one can get magical results.’’ 

Thereafter, Ms Ramen developed a prototype of tree encyclopedia for a project in the academy. Her work was not only appreciated by the faculty and her batch-mates, but several officers from the all over the country also praised the initiative. 

When she joined the Tamil Nadu forest department, Ms Ramen got the task to redevelop the app on a large scale. And that’s how `Treepedia’ came into existence. 

The challenges

Talking about the challenges that came in her way, Ms Ramen said, “data collection was the biggest challenge. We could not just rely on the books because sometime the experience of a farmer is different than what is in the book. So, a team worked with a farmers associations, forestry institutes and retired forest officers to gather the required information. Then language was also a barrier because some information was available in Tamil language while some only in English. To translate all of them in both the languages was a big task”. 

Ms. Ramen is currently posted as Deputy Conservator of Forest in Tamil Nadu

The app contains information about 150-plus species that can be planted in the state. Farmer could feed the factors like the soil type, climatic condition and get all the information like which and what size of plant to pick up for their land. It also has details like the size of the pit and the gap between two saplings. The app contains further details about the diseases that the plant could get and how to treat these, as also  information about which plants to pick for inter-crop farming.

Offline working facility 

The best part about the app is that it could also work offline. Ms. Ramen held as they were developing the app for the farmers, it was not possible for them to have high-speed internet at all times.  So, it has automatic download facility. If a farmer search about certain species, all the information gets downloaded in the background which can be used anytime. 

With her innovation, Ms. Ramen has helped lakhs of farmers and there earnings has increased. However, this is just a single feather in her cap. We will soon talk about her other achievements as well. 


Indian Masterminds Stories
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Related Stories
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
NEWS
Renewable Energy
India Must Double Renewable Energy Addition to 50 GW Annually to Hit 2030 Goal, Says S&P Global - Details Inside
THDC-resized
THDC India Commissions Nation’s First Variable Speed Pumped Storage Unit at Tehri, Marks Historic Milestone in Renewable Energy - All Details Mentioned Here
Prakash Punj, Patna Sahib
Beautification Work Completed at Prakash Punj, Patna Sahib: A New Landmark for Sikh Heritage & Tourism
Indian Railways
Indian Railways Strengthens Ticketing System with Digital Overhaul & Anti-BOT Measures - Know More
WCL Western Coalfield
WCL Achieves Record Profit Before Tax of Rs. 4,376 Crore in FY 2024–25, All Details Inside
Bihar vegetables
Historic: Bihar Exports Vegetables to Dubai for the First Time: Minister Prem Kumar Flags Off Consignment
Indian Police Services IPS Officer
3 IPS Officers Transferred in Madhya Pradesh Police Department Reshuffle; Priyanka Shukla Made AIG, Bhopal Police HQ
ICAS Service
Ministry of Finance Notifies New Indian Civil Accounts Service Recruitment Rules, 2025 - Here is All You Need To Know
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Videos
Monika Singh
Monika Singh’s Life Beyond the Bureaucracy | Video Interview 
IAS Tushar G Nikhare
Modernising Governance: A Digital Transformation in Gangtok
IMG-20250523-WA0036
Abhishek Singh's SECRET: Vipassana, Anthropology & Smart Answer Writing | Video Interview 
ADVERTISEMENT
UPSC Stories
Divyanshu Pal Nagar IFS
5 Years, 5 Mains, 4 Interviews: How Divyanshu Pal Nagar Stumbled in CSE, Triumphed in IFS - A Lesson for Every Aspirant
Divyanshu Pal Nagar’s inspiring five-year UPSC journey shows how perseverance, disciplined self-study,...
ANUBHAV SINGH UPSC IFS 2024
9 Years, 8 Attempts, 7 Failures: How Anubhav Singh Cracked UPSC IFS 2024 with AIR 3 Against All Odds | Exclusive
Anubhav Singh’s inspiring journey to UPSC IFS Rank 3 showcases relentless perseverance, strategic preparation,...
Jogender Sihag
“I Cleared UPSC, But My Grandfather isn’t Here to Hear it,” Jogender Sihag, AIR 521, UPSC CSE 2024
"Life is short; make the most of it, whether in civil service or any other field. Just have a clear vision...
Social Media
Tiger jump Sundarban
Stunning Viral Video Shows Royal Bengal Tiger Making Spectacular 30-Foot Leap Across River in Sunderbans - See It Here
Retired Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Susanta Nanda shared the clip online, which quickly went...
shubham kumar ias marriage
IAS Topper Weds BPSC Topper: Shubham Kumar Marries IRS Officer Priyangi Mehta in Patna; Wedding Video Goes Viral
Topper Couple Alert: Shubham Kumar, Priyangi Mehta’s Wedding Grabs Spotlight in Bihar
parveen kaswan elephant
Elephant Outsmarts Electric Fence! IFS Parveen Kaswan Shares Incredible Video!
In the now-viral 51-second clip, the intelligent giant approaches a wooden pole supporting high-voltage...
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Latest
Renewable Energy
India Must Double Renewable Energy Addition to 50 GW Annually to Hit 2030 Goal, Says S&P Global - Details Inside
THDC-resized
THDC India Commissions Nation’s First Variable Speed Pumped Storage Unit at Tehri, Marks Historic Milestone in Renewable Energy - All Details Mentioned Here
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Videos
Monika Singh
IAS Tushar G Nikhare
IMG-20250523-WA0036
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT