India: Reuters ploughs into Indian farming: Information put out on mobile phones could transform the fortunes of small farmers

Information put out on mobile phones could transform the fortunes of small farmers -and eventually Reuters

Standing in an onion field in a village outside Pune, Chandra Kant can check weather reports, get crop spraying information and find out how much onions are fetching at the local market, all on his mobile phone, for 175 rupees (£2.19) a quarter. The service is being offered by Reuters, better known for offering news and financial information to City workers for whom £2 would not cover a run to Starbucks.

So far the company has about 250,000 customers in Maharashtra, India's third-largest state, for its service that provides weather reports over a 50-mile radius and crop prices within a five-hour journey.

The service is part of a trend that has turned the mobile phone into the hottest development tool for the world's poor.

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