Yellala Munivarshitha, Hulas Pathak
Digital transformation and smart agriculture technologies are increasingly regarded as important levers for improving farm-level decision-making, resource-use efficiency and productivity. Yet, farm-level evidence on their awareness, usage and actual before-after impact remains limited for central Indian states such as Chhattisgarh. The present study assessed the awareness and usage level of digital technologies among farmers of Raipur district. It evaluated the changes in agricultural practices and productivity before and after their adoption. A descriptive and analytical research design was adopted, and 100 farmers were selected from nine villages across three blocks (Arang, Abhanpur and Dharsiwa) through a multistage random sampling procedure. Primary data were collected using a pre-tested structured interview schedule and analysed using frequency, percentage, mean score and the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test. Results revealed that smartphone ownership (86.00%) and internet access (84.00%) were considerably high among respondents, while awareness was greatest for Digital Payment Systems (59.00%) and Mobile Agriculture Applications (53.00%), and markedly lower for IoT-Based Irrigation Systems (8.00%), Soil Health Testing Tools (9.00%) and GPS-Based Machinery (9.00%). Most farmers used mobile applications only occasionally (40.00%) or sometimes (39.00%) rather than regularly. The Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test showed statistically significant improvement after adoption of digital technologies in the use of improved seeds (mean score 1.55 to 2.74; W = 24.50, p < 0.001), fertiliser and pesticide use (1.70 to 2.13; W = 616.00, p < 0.001) and crop productivity (1.73 to 2.10; W = 896.50, p < 0.001), whereas irrigation management, cost of cultivation and farm income did not change significantly (p > 0.05). The findings indicate that while basic digital tools have been widely adopted, translation of this adoption into productivity and economic gains remains partial, underscoring the need for targeted digital literacy programmes, improved rural connectivity and stronger extension support to help farmers realise the full benefits of digital agriculture.