By Nidhi Bhasin
India’s agricultural transformation is entering a new phase, one shaped not just by seeds and irrigation, but by data, connectivity and digital platforms. This shift creates a powerful opportunity to bring women farmers, who have long remained on the margins of agricultural decision-making, into the centre of India’s agri-economy.
Women now constitute over 42% of the agricultural workforce, and in several states form the backbone of farm labour and household food systems, according to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) 2024.
Despite their central role on the farm, women farmers have rarely had equal access to the information and decisions that shape it. Nearly half of India’s agricultural workforce is made up of women, but only a small share, about 12–15%, actually own land. That difference shows up in how much control they have over decisions and resources. Women in India are about one-third less likely than men to use mobile internet. In many cases, they continue to rely on second-hand advice through family members, neighbours or local intermediaries, while access to extension services, markets, credit and technology remains limited. As a result, the benefits of innovation often reach them last.
This is where digital tools can begin to shift the equation. They can put timely and relevant information directly in the hands of women farmers at scale, as the surrounding ecosystem continues to evolve to address structural gaps.
As mobile connectivity spreads deeper into rural India, access to agricultural information is no longer limited to extension systems or local networks. More farmers are beginning to receive advisories directly on their phones. Government initiatives such as the Digital Agriculture Mission are accelerating this shift, with over 8.48 crore Farmer IDs now created across the country. These digital identities are making it easier for farmers to access schemes, receive relevant advisories and connect with services in a more direct and timely way.
Over the past decade, India has shown that digital systems can reach people at scale. From payments to public services, platforms like UPI have changed how millions access and use services. That same shift is now beginning to reach agriculture.
As Access Deepens
As internet access reaches deeper into rural India, more farmers are beginning to engage directly with digital tools, whether it is checking weather updates, accessing crop advisories or tracking market prices. What was once mediated through local networks is increasingly becoming direct.
For women farmers, who have often relied on second-hand information, this shift can be significant. Direct access not only improves the quality of decisions but also strengthens their role in managing farm and household outcomes.
In the regions where we work, women farmers, especially smallholders, are becoming more confident as digital tools start to improve their results. Some are leasing more land. Others are planning their crops more carefully and making decisions they would not have taken earlier. Access to information is starting to show up in how they plan and how much they are willing to take on.
While the access expands, the next opportunity lies in deepening how these tools are used. Simple interfaces, local-language content, multimodal features, and shared access models can make it easier for more women farmers to engage with these platforms. As usage grows, digital tools can become part of everyday decision-making on the farm.
As more women farmers begin to use these tools, how information reaches them becomes just as important as access. In many communities, people are more willing to try something new when it comes through formats they are familiar with.
In states such as Bihar, we are seeing women engage more when information is available in local languages and delivered through formats such as video or voice. When the format feels easy to understand and use, adoption follows more naturally.
This is playing out at a much larger scale. India’s internet user base crossed 950 million in 2025, driven largely by rapid growth in rural connectivity. Rural India now accounts for about 57% of active users, or roughly 548 million people.
As more people come online, the opportunity is not just to expand access, but to ensure that these platforms are simple, relevant and easy to use.
Similar patterns are visible elsewhere. In Odisha, women-led collectives are using mobile-based advisories to make more informed decisions on sowing, input use and climate risks. These are early signs of how digital access is beginning to shape everyday farm decisions.
At this stage, human networks continue to play an important role. Community resource persons, self-help group leaders and extension workers help farmers interpret and act on digital information, especially as adoption is still growing.
But as usage expands, the limits of this approach become clear. Reaching millions of farmers consistently through human-led systems alone is difficult to sustain at scale and comes with a high cost. This is where digital platforms will play a larger role. As they become easier to use and more familiar, they will increasingly enable farmers to access information directly, helping bridge last-mile gaps in a more efficient and scalable way.
Bridging the Digital Divide
With improving connectivity and growing use of digital tools in daily farm decisions, the role of technology in agriculture will continue to expand. More farmers are already accessing advisories, weather updates, and market signals directly on their phones, making these tools part of how decisions are made on the farm and allowing these systems to scale more effectively. Evidence shows that digital advisory services can improve yields and encourage better farming practices.
The opportunity now lies in how these tools are designed and used. When they are simple, accessible and relevant, they become part of everyday routines and begin to close long-standing gaps in who has access to timely information. The next phase of this shift will depend on building tools that are easy to use, available in local languages and designed around the realities of how farmers engage with them.
Just as important is how we choose to build. We do not need to start from scratch each time. India has already put in place strong digital foundations. Building on shared, open infrastructure and aligning with the systems and direction already being led by the government, can help us move faster and reach further. It allows effort and investment to compound, rather than fragment.
When women farmers have timely information in their own hands, they plan better, make more confident decisions on inputs, cropping and markets, and take on greater responsibility in shaping outcomes on the farm. Over time, this leads to better productivity, stronger resilience and improved household incomes. It also opens up new roles for women within the rural economy.
In India, digital systems are steadily becoming part of how agriculture functions. You can already see it in small ways on the ground. A farmer checking the weather before deciding when to sow. Looking up crop advice before buying inputs. For many women, this is the first time that information is reaching them directly, and it is starting to change how they make decisions.
(The author is the CEO of Digital Green India)
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