In a first, Mahindra showcases driverless tractors

Its capabilities include auto-steer, auto headland turn, automatic implement lift and drop, skip passing, obstacle detection and avoidance, geofence lock and emergency stop.

Mahindra Tractors, part of Mahindra Group, on Tuesday showcased driverless tractors and said it is currently working on an electric tractor too.

Farmers can now control the tractors remotely, which will be launched in early 2018. The first priority would be to reduce the driver's dependence and the second would be to make it completely driverless. 

The first of its kind in the country, the tractor is being developed at the company's research facility in Chennai.

Pawan Goenka, Managing Director at Mahindra & Mahindra, said with the new technology productivity will increase, yield will improve and costs will come down.

"Today it will cost more, once the numbers scaled up price will come down," said Goenka.

"Our tractor R & D has always been at the forefront of pioneering cutting-edge solutions. Today’s display of the driverless tractor is another proud moment for us as it opens up new possibilities in farming” said Goenka.

Rajesh Jejurikar, President, Farm Equipment Sector, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. said, “Today the need for farm mechanisation is higher than ever before due to a labour shortage and the need to improve productivity and farm produce yield. Coupled with our ‘DiGiSENSE’ technology that we launched last year, the driverless tractor offers a distinct advantage to the Indian farmer by bringing an unprecedented level of intelligence to the tractor”. 

This technology will be deployed across Mahindra tractor platforms as well as in international markets such as USA and Japan, giving the tractors a competitive edge in global markets.

 Mahindra plans to offer the driverless tractor technology across its range of tractors from 20 HP to 100 HP.