Organisations Urge Agriculture Minister To Reconsider Promotion Of Kisan Mitra Chhadi; Cite Lack Of Scientific Validation For Snakebite Prevention

Mumbai: A collective of organisations and individuals has written to the Minister of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare, raising concerns regarding the recently introduced ‘Kisan Mitra Chhadi’. The signatories, working across India on snake conservation, ecological research, community education, rural healthcare and farmer safety, have alleged that the smart stick is being promoted as a tool to detect and deter snakes in agricultural fields without any scientific data.

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Eight Organisations Signed the Letter

The letter dated April 20 was written by Humane World for Animals India Foundation, The Liana Trust, Snakebite Healing and Education Society, Indian Snakes.org, Last Wilderness Foundation, Mhadei Research Centre, Madras Crocodile Bank Trust, and herpetologist Romulus Whitaker. They welcomed innovations aimed at reducing risk but urged caution in promoting devices that claim to detect or deter snakes without robust scientific validation.

The collective stated that in the absence of peer-reviewed evidence and field testing, such tools may create a false sense of security, leading farmers to rely on them instead of following proven safety measures like wearing protective footwear, using adequate lighting, storing materials safely and seeking timely medical care. They also emphasised the disproportionate economic and social impact of snakebite on vulnerable farming communities, such as loss of income, high medical costs, long-term disability, and debt. It said that promoting unverified tools, in this context, may place an additional financial burden on already at-risk populations.

“Farmer Safety Needs Proven Solutions”

Humane World for Animals India’s director of wildlife protection Sumanth Bindumadhav said, “We appreciate the government’s intent to prioritise farmer safety and explore new ways to reduce snakebites. However, farmer safety must be built on proven solutions. Without scientific validation, tools that claim to detect or deter snakes risk creating a false sense of security. What is needed is a balanced, evidence-based approach.”

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The coalition has also expressed its interest in working with the Ministry to promote farmer safety, and has urged that any such interventions be aligned with the National Centre for Disease Control’s National Action Plan for Prevention and Control of Snakebite Envenoming (NAPSE), which prioritises evidence-based strategies and community awareness.

The collective highlighted that India bears the world’s highest burden of snakebite mortality, with an estimated 58,000 deaths annually and several hundred thousand cases resulting in long-term disability. A large proportion of these incidents occur among farmers and agricultural workers during routine activities such as harvesting, irrigation, and walking through fields, particularly at night. At the same time, thousands of snake lives are lost each year due to fear-driven retaliation and a lack of awareness.

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