Fertiliser applied without knowing the soil, wasted irrigation water, diseases caught too late and costly weeding: thinking about those problems, young Manikganj innovator Hasibur Rahman Khan built a farm robot, and with it he has won his category at an international competition in Malaysia.
The robot moves around a field by itself collecting data on soil properties and moisture. It analyses the data to tell the farmer which nutrients the soil lacks, recommends fertiliser and can apply it as well. A camera using artificial intelligence (AI) analyses images of leaves and plants to identify diseased parts and harmful weeds. Linked to a mobile phone by Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, it lets the farmer see its readings and steer it.
Hasibur is a student at Khwaja Yunus Ali University and comes from Rouhadaha village in Dighi union, Manikganj Sadar upazila. He said the robot took a month to build and cost about Tk 65,000. At the 'World Sustainable and Development Goals 2026' competition at Multimedia University in Cyberjaya, Malaysia, he was champion in the 'Environmental Science and Sustainability' category and received the Platinum Winner award. He also came second overall across all categories and received a special environmental award and a gold medal.
Hasibur has been taking machines apart and building things since childhood. His aim now goes beyond prizes: he wants the robot to be of use to ordinary farmers, and making it work reliably in real fields is his biggest challenge. He has asked for government support.
His father, Abdul Wahab Khan, said that with government help the robot could be developed further, tried out in the field and eventually brought to farmers.
Shahjahan Siraj, deputy director of the Department of Agricultural Extension in Manikganj, said it would be very good if the invention could be adapted to the country's farmers and used commercially. Technology like this, for testing soil quality, spotting disease and using fertiliser and water as needed, could play an important part in cutting farmers' costs, he said.
The report is by Banglavision's Manikganj correspondent.
Photo: DLG e.V. / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0); a field robot at work, representative picture
Source: Banglavision
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