look news india
It has always been a big challenge for Indian farmers to protect the growing crops in the fields from stray animals, wild animals and unruly elements. Often the farms are far away from home or village, where neither electricity lines nor broadband Wi-Fi facilities are available. In such a situation, going out and guarding the fields at night is also risky for the safety of the farmers. However, modern technology has now found a permanent solution to this serious problem of farmers. Through the modern ‘4G Solar CCTV Camera’ (Solar 4G CCTV Camera) available in the market, farmers can watch every aspect of their fields live 24 hours a day on their smartphone screen while sitting at home. This device, which works without electricity and without broadband, is proving to be a new game-changer for security in farming.
Traditional CCTV cameras require constant 220V power and a Wi-Fi router to operate. But solar camera systems designed for farms are completely self-sufficient:
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Solar Panel and In-Built Battery: A compact solar panel (5W to 10W) is mounted on or alongside the camera. Its in-built lithium-ion battery (8000mAh to 15000mAh) gets charged by sunlight during the day. Once fully charged, this camera can work continuously for 3 to 5 days even without sunlight.
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4G SIM Card Slot: There is a 4G SIM card slot inside the camera like a normal mobile phone. Any basic data SIM of Jio, Airtel or Vi can be installed in it. The camera is directly connected to the farmer’s mobile app through the SIM’s internet network.
Keeping in mind the field conditions, these cameras have many advanced and practical features:
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360 Degree PTZ Rotation (PTZ Control): Through the mobile app, farmers can see the complete panoramic view of the field by rotating the camera 355 degrees left and right and 90 degrees up and down while sitting at home.
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Color Night Vision: Even in the dark of night, this camera records crystal clear and colorful videos instead of black and white. The infrared and LED flood lights installed in it provide clear footage from 30 to 50 meters away at night.
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AI Human and Motion Detection (AI Motion Alert): As soon as a human being, stray cattle or wild animal comes around the farm fence, the PIR motion sensor of the camera gets activated immediately. It sends siren notification to the farmer’s mobile.
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Two-Way Audio and Loud Siren (Two-Way Talk): The camera has both a mic and a loudspeaker. If any animal or suspicious person enters the field, the farmer can warn him by speaking from his phone or can drive away the animals by sounding a shrill alarm siren from the camera.
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Waterproof and rugged (IP66 Weatherproof): This camera comes with IP65/IP66 weatherproof rating to easily withstand dust, storm, scorching sun and torrential rain.
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Local SD card and cloud storage: To record footage, a micro SD card of up to 128GB or 256GB can be installed in the camera, which keeps several weeks of old recordings safe.
The prices of 4G solar cameras in the Indian market and on online e-commerce platforms (Amazon, Flipkart etc.) vary depending on their lens and battery capacity:
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Basic Single Lens 4G Solar Camera: Between ₹3,500 to ₹4,500
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Dual/Triple Lens (Dual/Triple Lens PTZ) Camera: Between ₹5,000 to ₹7,500 (In this, one lens remains fixed and the other rotates 360 degrees)
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Heavy Duty Commercial Solar Security Setup: In the range of ₹8,000 to ₹12,000
Once an investment of ₹4,000 to ₹6,000 is made, the farmer only needs to recharge the SIM card with normal data of ₹150 to ₹200 every month.
To get better performance and longer life from the camera, farmers should keep some basic things in mind:
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Direction of solar panel: Always install the solar panel with a slight inclination towards the south, so that it receives direct and maximum sunlight from morning to evening.
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Height Selection: Fix the camera on a pole at least 10 to 15 feet high in the middle of the field or on the roof of the borewell/room, so that no anti-social element can damage the camera and the coverage area of the field is also large.
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SIM network check: Use the SIM card of the telecom company (Airtel or Jio) whose 4G network provides the strongest signal in your field in the camera so that the video does not lag.