New Delhi

In response to the needs of marginal and small farmers, the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute (CSIR-CMERI) has created a small, inexpensive, and highly maneuverable tractor with a low horsepower range, the Ministry of Science & Technology announced on Friday.

The Department of Science & Technology’s (DST) Science for Equity Empowerment and Development (SEED) Division provided funding to CSIR for the tractor’s development.

In India, almost 80 per cent of cultivators are small and marginal farmers. Many of them still rely on farming with bullocks, which is difficult due to high maintenance, operating, and yielding costs.

Bullock-driven ploughs are being replaced with power tillers, although they are difficult to use. However, the ministry stated that most small farmers cannot afford tractors and that they are not ideal for small farms.

In order to help the local farmers, CSIR-CMERI is talking about licensing the technology to regional businesses for large-scale manufacture.

An MSME from Ranchi has expressed interest in producing it by establishing a factory to produce the tractor in large quantities. According to the ministry, they intend to provide farmers with the designed tractor through various state government tenders at discounted prices.

A 9 horsepower (horsepower) diesel engine with 8 forward and 2 reverse gears and a PTO with 6 splines at 540 rpm has been created for the tractor. The tractor weighs around 450 kg in total, with 4.5-10 and 6-16 wheel sizes on the front and back, respectively.

The dimensions of the wheelbase, turning radius, and ground clearance are 1.75 m, 255 mm, and 1200 mm, respectively.