Saffron Improvement Programme

Programme Overview

The saffron programme is structured as three linked activity streams covering field operations, post-harvest handling and controlled-environment production.

Activity 1: autonomous agribot and sensor fusion based weed management.
Activity 2: robotic flower plucking and stigma separation.
Activity 3: smart plant growth chamber for year-round saffron production.

Interactive Activity Switcher

Open any saffron activity below and review its objectives, methodology, outcomes, joint execution details and team on the same page.

Activity 1 Activity 2 Activity 3

Activity Explorer

Combined Saffron Activities

Each activity remains clearly separated inside one responsive programme page, so the full saffron pipeline is easier to read and navigate.

Saffron Activity 1

Autonomous agribot for precise weed management

Field automation, weed data intelligence and sensor fusion tailored specifically for saffron cultivation landscapes.

1 agribot-led field system

Sensor fusion for precise weed detection

Field ready weed management workflow

Objectives

Development of a modular, autonomous, electric Agri-Bot for effective field operations.
Creation of data repository of weeds of saffron crop at various growth and development phases for ease of detection of weeds.
Development of an intelligent Sensor Fusion-Based Hardware System for precise weed detection in real time field condition.
Development of versatile end effectors with mechanical attachments for effective weed management in saffron crops.

Saffron activity 1 methodology — Methodology

A modular agribot with weed detection and field operation support for saffron cultivation.

Deliverables

Agribot for weed management of saffron.

Benefits

Site specific weed management system for saffron.
Automated saffron harvester with post harvesting operation.
AI/ML-based agro-ecosystem model for implementing advanced control algorithms to maintain optimum environmental parameters and ensure maximum yield.
Accurate and timely knowledge of the growing environment and better control over several crucial factors will lead to significantly improved plant performance.
Increase in productivity and production under protected climatic conditions in temperate and cold arid climatic conditions.

Joint Execution

Activity 1 is jointly supported by SKUAST Kashmir, C-DAC Kolkata, C-DAC Mohali and CSIR-CMERI Durgapur & Ludhiana for field validation, cyber physical systems, embedded intelligence and agribot engineering.

Project Team

Activity 1 Team

Field agronomy, weed intelligence, agribot planning and interdisciplinary engineering support come together in this activity.

Principal Investigator

Dr. Syed Zameer Hussain

Professor, SKUAST, Kashmir

Activity Coordination Lead

Dr. Showkat Rasool

Head & Incharge, CAIML, SKUAST-Kashmir

Technology Collaboration Lead

Dr. Hena Ray

Scientist-F, Cyber Physical System, C-DAC Kolkata

SKUAST, Kashmir Contributors

Field validation, agronomy planning and crop systems expertise for autonomous weed management in saffron fields.

Dr. Bashir Ahmad Alie

Prof. & Head, Agronomy, FoA

Dr. Ghulam Hassan Mir

Assistant Professor, ARSSSS

Dr. Niyaz Ahmad Dar

Assistant Professor, ARSSSS

Dr. Imtiyaz Zargar

Assistant Professor, FST

Dr. Owais Ahmad Bhat

Assistant Professor, CoAET

Dr. Tawheed Amin

Assistant Professor, Division of FST

Joint Execution Partners

Broader interdisciplinary support from C-DAC Kolkata, C-DAC Mohali and CSIR-CMERI strengthens robotics, sensing and mechanical design for Activity 1.

Mr. Devdulal Ghosh

Scientist-E

SKUAST Kashmir: saffron domain knowledge, field validation and crop response studies.
C-DAC Kolkata: cyber physical systems, sensing integration and control intelligence.
C-DAC Mohali: embedded systems and AI support for field-ready deployment.
CSIR-CMERI Durgapur & Ludhiana: mechanical design and agribot engineering support.

Saffron Activity 2

Robotic harvesting, flower plucking and stigma separation

Post-harvest automation designed to reduce manual intensity and improve speed, consistency and processing quality.

AI vision and control support

3 core robotic subsystems

Integrated post-harvest workflow

Objectives

Development of a smart robotic solution for post-harvesting management of saffron.
Design and development of a saffron flower plucker.
Development of a system for separating stigmas from saffron flowers.

Saffron activity 2 methodology — Methodology

Robotic harvest workflow with plucker, stigma separator and AI-based control system.

Deliverables

AI enabled solution for saffron harvesting and stigma separation.
A functional robotic system for post-harvesting management of saffron.
Robotic vehicle for saffron harvesting.
Saffron plucker mechanism.
Stigma separator.
AI-based vision system and control software.

Benefits

Site specific weed management system for saffron.
Automated saffron harvester with post harvesting operation.
AI/ML-based agro-ecosystem model for implementing advanced control algorithms to maintain optimum environmental parameters and ensure maximum yield.
Accurate and timely knowledge of the growing environment and better control over several crucial factors will lead to significantly improved plant performance.
Increase in productivity and production under protected climatic conditions in temperate and cold arid climatic conditions.

Joint Execution

This activity is jointly executed by SKUAST Kashmir, C-DAC Kolkata, C-DAC Mohali and CSIR-CMERI Durgapur & Ludhiana, leveraging electronics, AI and mechanical automation for holistic saffron post-harvest transformation.

Project Team