• TAFE-BAGRI-JFarm-Services
    JFarm Services
    launched in Patna

TAFE's free of cost tractor rental platform – 'JFarm Services' launched in Patna by Bihar Agriculture Minister
Dr. Prem Kumar

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  • TAFE's CSR initiative to support small and marginal farmers
  • Farmer-to-Farmer model (F2F) - Farmers can offer all brands of tractors and implements on rent
  • Aids rural entrepreneurship and generates additional revenue for farmers



Patna, Bihar | October 05, 2018: TAFE's vision of Cultivating India – Cultivating the World has paved the way for the expansion of its nationwide CSR initiative - 'JFarm Services' and the 'JFarm Services App'. This unique initiative has been launched in Bihar jointly with the Department of Agriculture, Government of Bihar, under the Bihar Agriculture Growth and Reform Initiative (BAGRI), in the presence of Dr. Prem Kumar, the Honorable Minister of Agriculture, Bihar. JFarm Services facilitates the hiring of tractors and modern farm machinery to farmers free of cost.

Agriculture is the main source of livelihood in Bihar and driving growth in the agriculture sector is key to developing the state. 92% of the landholdings by area in Bihar are with small and marginal farmers who have limited or no access to agriculture mechanization. JFarm Services proposes to launch its services in 11 districts in Bihar (Begusarai, Bhojpur, Buxar, Darbhanga, Gaya, Nalanda, Patna, Rohtas, Samstipur, Muzaffarpur and Vaishali) and expand across Bihar within the next year. Farmers who own small parcels of land across Bihar can now hire state-of-the-art farm equipment to increase their productivity and income significantly.

The JFarm Services App will empower farmers with affordable farm mechanization services in a transparent manner. Farmers looking to rent their existing tractors and farm equipment of any brand are linked directly to farmers seeking to hire them through the free of cost "Farmer-to-Farmer model" (F2F) of JFarm Services app which enables them to contact farmers, negotiate rental prices and fulfill their respective requirements directly. With this pioneering platform, TAFE brings the benefits of the technology-enabled sharing economy to boost the income of the farmers.

Ms. Mallika Srinivasan, Chairman & CEO - TAFE, said: "India is a land of small farms. A majority of our farmers, almost 85% of them, have no access to farm mechanization which has the potential to improve their yields and income. JFarm Services is a CSR initiative that allows both farmers offering their tractors and farm equipment on rent, and smaller farmers seeking this service benefit directly from the JFarm Services app. It is our aim to touch the lives of millions of farmers across the country as we progress towards the Prime Minister's vision of doubling farm income by 2022."

Farmers can hire tractors and equipment via the JFarm Services Android App or by contacting the toll-free helpline 1800-4-200-100. The App can be used on low-cost Android phones and is designed to run on very little data. Farmers who don't own smart or feature phones can use the toll-free helpline. The platform also provides periodic updates on local weather, market, agri-news and mandi prices without any fee.

Mr. T R Kesavan, President & COO, Product Strategy & Corporate Relations - TAFE, said: "TAFE through JFarm Services has collaborated with the Government of Bihar as a part of the BAGRI initiative to support the GoB in making farm mechanization available to small and marginal farmers through the shared economy model to create sustainable agricultural productivity and growth for the state."

JFarm Services initial pilot roll-out covered large states like Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. JFarm Services has directly benefitted around 60,000 users resulting in over 100,000 orders, adding up to over 250,000 hours in hired farm machinery usage.

About JFarm and JFarm Services: JFarmServices.in

TAFE established JFarm India in Chennai, Tamil Nadu in 1964 with an objective of empowering farmers with advanced farm technologies to increase farm productivity and meet India’s growing food demands. Over the years, JFarm has worked through several challenging situations from limited water availability to inputs costs to the shortage of labour and has developed a viable and sustainable model that contributes to improved farm productivity, profitability and livelihood opportunities.

JFarm Services is an initiative by TAFE to increase easy access to farm mechanization solutions through rental of tractors and farm equipment for small and large farms, localized weather forecast, latest mandi prices, agri-news alerts and advisory. Small and marginal farmers, who hold more than 80% of the land holdings in India may not be able to afford ownership of tractors or implements. JFarm Services bridges this gap by connecting these farmers with tractor and equipment owners through its Farmer-2-Farmer platform. Farmers can explore and book nearby equipment through:

JFarm Services Android App | Toll-free helpline: 1800-4-200-100

This free app connects tractor owners and Custom Hiring Centres (CHCs) operated by tractors and equipment owners directly to farmers seeking farm mechanization solutions, thereby facilitating a fair and transparent rental process while focusing on quality, dependability and timely delivery. JFarm Services offers the farmers and renters a wide range of prospects for hiring and renting of farm equipment and connects them directly to negotiate and fulfill their respective requirement.

With the creation of this platform comprising farm machinery owners and users, JFarm Services has impacted the lives of over 60,000 farmers across 4 states in India since its inception in 2017.

Currently, JFarm Services (JFS) operates in Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh (MP) and Uttar Pradesh (UP) - making farm mechanization viable and affordable to all. JFarm Services is further fostering digital empowerment of Indian farmers while creating a breed of new rural entrepreneurs, significant job opportunities and employment.

About TAFE: tafe.com

The world’s third largest tractor manufacturer and second largest in India by volumes with an annual sale of over 150,000 tractors; TAFE is one of the leading exporters of tractors from India with a turnover in excess of INR 93 billion. TAFE manufactures a range of tractors in both the air-cooled and water-cooled platforms and markets them under its four iconic brands - Massey Ferguson, TAFE, Eicher, and the recently acquired Serbian tractor and agricultural equipment brand - Industrija Mašina i Traktora (IMT). Acclaimed for its quality and dependability, TAFE’s products and services are present in over 100 countries across the world, including developed countries in Europe and the Americas.

TAFE’s adaptive agriculture research centre JFarm has developed a model of integrated farm practices suitable for small to large farms resulting in enhanced productivity. It follows a balanced approach to nutrient management with emphasis on low cost in-farm input creation, supported by mechanization, tested soil and water management practices, appropriate crop and seed selection, advanced crop production and protection technologies to make farming more sustainable and profitable.

Besides tractors and farm machinery, TAFE manufactures diesel engines, silent gensets, batteries, hydraulic pumps and cylinders, gears and transmission components, and has business interest in vehicle franchises and plantations. TAFE is committed to the Total Quality Movement (TQM). In the recent past various manufacturing plants of TAFE have garnered numerous ‘TPM Excellence Awards’ from the Japan Institute of Plant Maintenance (JIPM), as well as a number of other regional awards for TPM excellence. TAFE became the first Indian tractor manufacturer to win the Frost & Sullivan Global Manufacturing Leadership Award in 2018, being recognized with the ‘Enterprise Integration and Technology Leadership Award’ and two ‘Supply Chain Leadership Awards’. In recognition of its outstanding contribution to engineering exports, TAFE has been named the ‘Star Performer – Large Enterprise (Agricultural Tractors)’ at the 40th Engineering Exports Promotion Council of India – Southern Region Awards (2015-16), for the 21st time in a row. TAFE has also been conferred the ‘Regional Contributor Award’ for quality supplies from Toyota Motor Company, Japan, and the ‘Manufacturing Supply Chain Operational Excellence - Automobiles Award’ at the second Asia Manufacturing Supply Chain Summit for its supply chain transformation in 2013. TAFE's tractor plants are certified under ISO 9001 for efficient quality management systems and under ISO 14001 for environment friendly operations.

Links:
Site - JFarmServices.in     |     Android App - JFarm Services     |     Facebook - JFarm Services

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