Current Affairs - Technology - Discussion

Chandigarh University developed a lightweight AI-powered Transformer Model designed to improve crop yield prediction through precision farming. The model uses imagery from the European Space Agency's Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 satellites along with climate variables such as rainfall, temperature, and soil moisture. It requires 40% fewer parameters than conventional AI models, enabling faster predictions with lower computational costs. The system was successfully evaluated on paddy, maize, moong, and sugarcane, outperforming traditional Random Forest and LSTM models. This innovation can support better farm management, agricultural planning, and efficient resource utilisation for farmers.