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ThesisItem Open Access Economic analysis of marketing and post-harvest losses of cash crops: a comparative analysis(CSK HPKV, Palampur, 2022-12-28) Katoch, Shagun; Lal, HarbansHimachal Pradesh offers enormous opportunities to practice cash crops mainly off-season as these have several unique and inherent advantages in terms of agro-climatic conditions and rich biodiversity. These crops offer greater hope for raising farmers out of the poverty due to higher marketable surplus and better prices at markets compared to other crops. Although farmers have succeeded on the production front, they have not achieved appreciably in terms of price realization for their produce. The intermediaries are depriving them of their due share of consumer’s rupee. However, these cash crops are grown in every district of the state without any organized backup of post- harvest management techniques which lead to low productivity and high spoilage of these crops. Therefore, the present study was carried out to work out economic analysis of marketing and post-harvest losses of cash crops in Baijnath (AES-I) and Kangra (AES-II) blocks of district Kangra in the state. The study was based on primary data collected through survey method from 100 vegetable growers selected randomly from 5 randomly selected vegetable growing villages each in AES-I and AES-II. The major findings reveal that cropping pattern of the sample growers was dominated by vegetables as these accounted for 69.69 per cent and 66.04 per cent of the total cropped area in AES-I and AES-II, respectively. The cropping intensity was nearly 202 per cent in AES-I and 209 in AES-II. The total production of vegetables was more in AES-II (74.21 q) than AES-I (43.54 q). The marketable surplus of all the vegetable crops except potato was found to be more than 90 per cent of total production in AES-I while in AES-II, all the vegetables had more than 95 per cent of the marketable surplus. The total marketed surplus of all the vegetables was higher in AES-II (3076.45 q) as compared to AES-I (1388.19 q). Among all vegetables, total marketed surplus per farm was highest for cauliflower (341.50 q) in AES-I while it was highest for bottle gourd (579.33 q) in AES-II. There was post-harvest loss of 2.40 quintal per farm in all the vegetables grown in AES-I. Comparatively, the post-harvest loss in AES-II was 5.20 quintal per farm in all the vegetables. Tomato accounted for the maximum post-harvest loss which alone shared 35.83 per cent and 20.76 per cent of the total loss per farm in AES-I and AES-II, respectively. The independent variables included in the regression model explained about 70.01 to 93.81 per cent variation in the post-harvest losses of all major vegetable crops in both the agro-ecological situations. The growers followed three marketing channels for disposal of vegetables out of which channel I (Producer →Local trader → Retailer→ Consumer) was the most used channel in AES-I by more than 70 per cent of the growers while Channel II (Producer→ Commission agent-cum-wholesaler →Retailer →Consumer) was the most used channel for disposal of vegetables in AES-II by more than 68 per cent of the growers except okra. The producer’s share in consumer rupee was found to be highest in channel-III (Producer-retailer-consumer) ranging from 74 to 81 per cent for all the vegetables in both AES-I and AES-II. High incidence of pest and diseases, lack of scientific storage facilities and unfavourable price received by growers were the important problems faced by the growers. Lack of storage facilities and high loss of produce during transportation were the important problems faced by the traders. The study suggested that small scale post-harvest processing infrastructure should be created in the study area as growers are sustaining huge post-harvest losses affecting returns accruing to them. The efforts should be made to reduce the pre-harvest disease/pest occurrence at growers’ level by educating themThesisItem Open Access Economic analysis of potato cultivation in Trans Giri region of Himachal Pradesh(CSK HPKV, Palampur, 2023-01-12) Bhardwaj, Sapna; Bala, BrijPotato is one of the major food crops and is consumed all over the world. It is the third-most significant food crop in the world after wheat and rice. Contribution of potato to the agricultural GDP of India per unit of cultivable land is more than either rice or wheat. It is also a principal cash crop grown in Himachal Pradesh. Potato accounts for 10.85% of the state's total (17.22 lakh MT) vegetable output, which is the highest among all vegetables. In terms of potato area and output, the state's third-ranked district is Sirmaur, and the Trans-Giri region of Sirmaur is notable for its high quality potato production. Therefore, in the light of vital importance of potato in the economy, the present study entitled, “Economic analysis of potato cultivation in Trans-Giri region of Himachal Pradesh” was conducted. The study was based on the information gathered from 60 farmers selected from ten villages in two blocks namely Rajgarh and Sangrah, by proportional cum random sampling. Based on the total land holding, the chosen respondents were classified into small and large farm categories. The sample comprised of 40 small and 20 large farmers. On the overall farms, the total land holding was found to be 3.09 hectare out of which only 0.60 hectare was operational holding with 0.48 hectare on small farms and 0.84 hectare on large farms. Potato stood on 2 nd place in cropping pattern after maize covering about 14 per cent of gross cropped area with the average yield of 225 q/ha on overall farms. The total cropping intensity was found to be 198.22 per cent on overall farms. The income generated from potato accounted for around 11 per cent of the total household income and 19 per cent of the total agricultural income on overall farms. The total variable cost, total cost and net farm income on overall farm came to be Rs. 17,6368/hectare, Rs. 21,4929/hectare and Rs. 17,1618/hectare, respectively. Hired labour and potato seed made up the majority of the expenses which was around 52 per cent of total variable costs. Potato production seemed profitable with an output-input ratio of 1.80. According to the production function analysis, the key variables influencing potato production were seed, FYM, labour, and area under potato cultivation. MVP of practically every element was greater than unity, suggesting more room for their investment to generate more revenue. The problems and constraints like high cost of seed, low price of produce, high cost of labour, lack of irrigation infrastructure, lack of availability of quality potato seeds and high cost of transportation were the most ranked problems. To increase the production and profitability of potato crop, farmers must be educated to apply inputs in accordance with package of practices. High quality seeds at affordable prices should also be provided at Kedhadhar potato agricultural farm. To improve the negotiating position and marketing effectiveness, the potato producers must be encouraged to create their own cooperatives or self-help organisation.ThesisItem Open Access An economic analysis of dairy farming in Himachal Pradesh(CSK HPKV, Palampur, 2023-01-20) Pratyush; Thakur, Rajesh KumarThe dairy farming has immense importance in developing economies like India, for providing nutritional support, reducing rural poverty, ensuring food security for millions of rural households and enhancing economic growth. India is the world's largest producer and consumer of dairy products, with the milk production of 209.96 million tonnes and per capita availability of 427 gm/day. Himachal Pradesh registered the milk production of about 15.76 lakh tonnes in 2020-21 with the 630 gm/day per capita availability of milk. Therefore, the present study was undertaken in the Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh. The district was purposively selected because it has the highest cattle population and second largest milk production among the different districts of the state. In order to meet the objectives of study, both primary as well as secondary data were collected. Primary data were collected from 72 dairy farmers selected through multi-stage sampling method. The secondary data were collected from different reports, journals, departmental websites, etc. The variable cost was found to be maximum in Holstein Friesian i.e. Rs. 398.10 and minimum in case of local cow i.e. Rs. 226.13 per animal per day. Among the different items of cost, the share of fodder and feed in total cost was highest followed by labour cost. The cost of production per litre of milk varied between Rs. 24.79 in Holstein Friesian to Rs. 49.26 in local cow. The gross returns were found to be maximum in Holstein Friesian cow (Rs. 546.90 /animal/ day) and minimum in local cow (Rs. 212.35 /animal/ day). The overall net returns over total cost were found to be Rs. 53.23 per animal per day on sample farms whereas the net returns over variable cost and total cost were negative in local cows by 13.78 and 45.87 rupees per day. Regression analyses indicated that for jersey cross, green fodder, dry fodder, expenditure on health care and for Holstein Friesian, the green fodder, dry fodder, mineral mixture and lactation number were the main factors affecting the milk yield. The main problems faced by dairy farmers were high cost of inputs and scarcity of green fodder round the year, high wage rate of labour, non-remunerative prices of milk and milk products, high purchasing cost of exotic breeds, high cost of medicines and susceptibility of improved breeds to the diseases. The net returns over buffalo and cross/exotic breeds of cows was found to be highest so it is suggested that farmers can earn more profit by replacing local cows with the breed of cows like Jersey cross and Holstein Friesian and buffaloes. Farmers should be educated about the comparative profitability of improved breeds over the local breeds. Government should make policies reducing the input costs such as of feed and fodder, concentrates and mineral mixture so that total cost can be reduced and returns can be increased. Efficient extension services should be provided to farmers so that they can improve the value addition to their milk products to make it more efficient and profitable venture.ThesisItem Open Access Economics of production and marketing of tomato in Himachal Pradesh(palampur, 2022-11-30) Jyoti; Gupta, ManojTomato is one of the principal cash crops grown in Himachal Pradesh and accounts for about 15.32 per cent of the total vegetables produced in the state. District Solan is known as “City of Red Gold” owning to its dominance in the state tomato production. Off-season tomato farming has emerged as the primary source of income of some farmers in this district. The small and large farmers engaged in tomato cultivation are facing new challenges on the production and marketing front. The cost of various inputs has increased many folds affecting the profitability matrix of different crops in general and tomato crop in particular. The present study was carried out to study the economics of production and marketing of tomato in Himachal Pradesh to suggest various options for improving the prevalent tomato production and marketing system in the state. The present study was based on both primary and secondary data. The primary data were gathered through interview method from farmers of Solan district, Himachal Pradesh while secondary data were collected from various publications and websites of state government. The primary data collected from 90 farmers selected through multi stage random selection from selected villages of two blocks namely Kandaghat and Solan. The results revealed that the compound growth rate of area, production and productivity of tomato in Himachal Pradesh were 4.78, 6.39 and 1.53, respectively whereas, in Solan district the respective figures were 4.48, 6.28 and 1.72. The results indicated that the area under tomato was 32.87 per cent of total cropped area with average yield of 343.22 q/ha on an average farm. Out of total farmer’s income about 70.70 per cent was contributed by agriculture crops including tomato. The total cost of cultivation was estimated to be Rs. 368317 per hectare with variable cost accounting for about 84.14 per cent of the total cost. The output-input ratio was higher on large farms (2.46) than on small farms (2.09). Production function analysis indicated that seedlings, FYM and area under tomato were the most important factors affecting the tomato production. The marketed surplus of tomato accounted for nearly 88.98 per cent of its total production across the small and large farm category of farmers. The total production, losses and home consumption turned out to be most important factors affecting the marketed surplus of tomato. The channel- III involving producer primary wholesaler- secondary wholesaler- retailer- consumer was the most important channel followed by about 86.23 per cent of farmers. The producer’s share in the consumer’s rupee was highest in channel- I (83.55%) where the farmers sold tomato to retailers and then to consumers. This was followed by channel- II (70.55%) and channel- III (60.01%). The channel- I (involving producers- retailers- consumers) was found to be most efficient in the study area from the view point of higher net price received by farmers and higher marketing efficiency index. The non-availability of quality seeds on the production front and disposal of produce and transportation charges on the marketing front were the major problems faced by the farmers. This study suggests that farmers must be educated and trained to use complete package of practices to enhance the profitability of tomato crop. The tomato growers must also be encouraged and strengthened to adopt small scale value addition technologies to further enhance profitability of the cropThesisItem Open Access Assessment of livelihood status of farmers of Himachal Pradesh trained by CSK HPKV, Palampur(palampur, 2020-11-18) Dhadwal, Neha; Thakur, Rajesh KumarAgriculture is the major source of livelihood for majority of the rural population in the developing countries like India. The livelihood security is a complex concept that is location specific, subjective and dynamic. It comprises of food, financial, health, cultural and educational securities and among these, food security is undoubtedly the major contributor of livelihood security. The farmers often face the problem of low level of productivity and farm income due to lack of proper knowledge regarding the usage of modern farming techniques. In Himachal Pradesh, imparting trainings to the farmers is one of the mandates of CSK HPKV, Palampur. During the period of 2016 to 2018, Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd. Shimla has sponsored 52 training programmes to CSKHPKV in which 1300 farmers were trained in different streams. In the present study an attempt has been made to assess the livelihood status of trained farmers with respect to their farm resources, level of awareness & adoption of farm technologies and the different domains of livelihood security. Among the different districts of the state, the highest number of trained farmers were from the district Kangra and hence the district was selected purposively. In order to meet out the requirements of the objectives of the study, primary data were collected from 60 trained farmers through a two-stage sampling design. The secondary data pertaining to various trainings programmes conducted by CSKHPKV, Palampur were collected from records of Directorate of Extension Education, CSKHPKV, Palampur. The results were presented by working out averages, percentages and various indices for livelihood security. The average size of land holding was found to be quite low i.e. 0.3595 ha out of which 0.3055 ha was cultivated on overall farm situation. As far as employment of active workers was concerned, the majority (60.11 %) were associated with farming; while private jobs and government services was the major source of occupation for about 13 and 6 per cent of sample population, respectively, on overall farm situation. As far as the livestock inventory of the sample households was concerned, the average size of herd was found to be 1.62, having the value of Rs. 25,870/farm. The inventory of farm tools, implements and machinery on per farm basis was to the tune of Rs. 39,897 on overall basis. The analysis of the cropping pattern indicated that paddy and wheat were the major crops accounting for about 24 and 19 per cent of the total cropped area. The cropping intensity on the sample households was estimated at 204.75 per cent on overall basis. The analysis of awareness and knowledge about the different crop production practices indicated that the awareness level of sample households was quite good except for that of the weed management through the chemical application. As far as the use of FYM was concerned, it was on the lower side and the gap ranged between 3 to 17 per cent in different crops while in case of N, P and K, the percent gap ranged between 20 to 65 per cent for K among different crops. The per capita household income from different sources was estimated at Rs 4,96,086 in which the share of farm income was highest (60.69 per cent). The values of major domains of livelihood security index indicated that the sample households were relatively more secured with respect to education (0.46) followed by economic (0.30), food (0.27) and social (0.20) security aspect. The value of composite livelihood security index and weighted composite livelihood security index was found to be 0.31 and 0.39, respectivelyThesisItem Open Access Economics of Organic Farming and Role of CSK HPKV in Transfer of Organic Farming Technology in Himachal Pradesh(palampur, 2020-11-18) Kaur, Jasmeet; Lal, HarbansGreen Revolution technologies, supported by policies and fuelled by agrochemicals, machinery, and irrigation are known to have enhanced agricultural production and productivity. While these technologies greatly helped to address the food security of India, farmers using these technologies have to depend upon the purchased inputs. The cost of cultivation under this system is consistently increasing over the years. Due to the rampant use of inorganic chemicals for production in agriculture, the quality of food products, environment and eco-system has deteriorated. Organic agriculture is one of the broad spectrums of production methods that are supportive of the environment. Organic farming is certainly an answer to make safe food, eco-system and environment and to bring stability and sustainability to agriculture. The farmers in hilly regions have the opportunity to patronize organic farming ‘by default’. Realizing the importance, Model Organic Research Farm was established at CSK HPKV, Palampur on 15th April 2006. To examine the impact of institutional trainings on adoption of natural/organic farming technology in the state, a sample of 60 farmers was selected randomly through proportional allocation method from selected villages of Kangra and Hamirpur districts. The average size of land holding was 0.83 ha and about 68 per cent of area was put under cultivation. The cropping pattern revealed that among the different crops, the major proportion of total cropped area was occupied by paddy (18.24 %), maize+blackgram (11.56%) and maize (7.86 %) during the kharif season. Whereas, during the rabi season major area accounted for wheat (14.54%), wheat +gram intercrop (12.32%) and potato (8.59%). The net returns with family labour were found to be significantly high in maize + blackgram intercrop (Rs. 30648/ha) than the sole maize crop (Rs. 5608/ha). Similarly, in case of rabi season, wheat+ gram intercrop yielded higher returns (Rs. 26258/ha) than sole wheat crop (Rs. 5673/ha) on overall farm situation. The logit model was used to analyse the factors affecting the adoption of natural/organic farming and the estimates showed that education, family size and number of livestock per household significantly affected the adoption of natural/organic farming in the study area. The principal component analysis was used to calculate the overall adoption index of organic practices which resulted in 72.24 per cent of adoption level by the farmers. To further enhance the adoption levels, it is suggested that liberal funding may be provided to the university to promote organic/natural farming throughout the state. There is need to follow cluster approach and provide certification subsidy to farmers. Moreover, marketing system for organic commodities need to be developed as there is huge potential for organically grown products, worldwide.ThesisItem Open Access Economics of Different Crops Under Natural Farming at CSKHPKV, Palampur Farms(palampur, 2020-12-31) Gautam, Ishani; Bala, BrijExcessive use of agro chemicals resulted into degradation of soil and water affecting microbial community on one hand while on the other hand, there are cases of farmers’ suicides due to their inability to pay back loans taken for purchasing these agro-chemicals. With an objective to reduce pressure on environment as well as on farmers, Padma Shri recipient Subhash Palekar experimented various techniques and consolidated them into a concept called natural farming. These techniques are being popularized in different states. Therefore, the present study was taken to examine the economics of different crops under natural farming. The study pertained to CSK HPKV, Palampur farms as the natural farming in Himachal Pradesh started with the inauguration of a pilot project on natural farming at CSK HPKV, Palampur. It was observed that the cost of various nutrient formulations prepared on natural farms viz., Jeevamrit and Beejamrit was Rs. 2.36 and 8.99, respectively per litre while that of Ghanjeevamrit was Rs. 9.87 per kg. Variable cost accounted for more than 90 per cent of total cost incurred for preparation of these formulations. Per litre costs of pesticide formulations like Neemastra, Agniastra and Brahmastra were found to be Rs. 18.42, Rs. 12.69 and Rs. 14.46, respectively. Crops selected for the study were maize, pea, wheat, gram, soybean, finger millet and foxtail millet and the per hectare total cost of cultivation for these crops was Rs. 31686, 47555, 36914, 38280, 39267, 25711, and 21872, respectively. Comparison of these costs with the costs of crops grown under conventional farming showed that the total costs were comparatively less under natural farming. Further, it was also found that the yields and hence, the gross returns of crops under natural farming were less than the crops grown under conventional farming. Despite lower yields, BC ratios were higher under natural farming due to low cultivation costs. It was inferred that the natural farming can provide higher net returns but the yield/total production may go down risking the food security. Therefore, some efforts are needed in the direction to ensure equivalent yields under natural farming before advocating it on large scale.ThesisItem Open Access Economic analysis of hybrid paddy production in Poanta Sahib block of district Sirmaur (H.P.)(palampur, 2019-07-23) Thakur, Narender; Gupta, ManojRice (Oryza sativa L.) is a cereal crop and is the staple food for more than 60 per cent of world‘s populace. About 90 per cent of all rice grown in the world is produced and consumed in the Asian region. In India, rice accounts for 32.7% and 41.5% of the acreage and production of food grains respectively. The present study was undertaken on hybrid paddy in Poanta Sahib block of Sirmaur district of Himachal Pradesh. A survey of 60 hybrid paddy growers was conducted in Poanta Sahib block. Out of 60 farmers, 24 hybrid paddy growers were small and 36 growers were large. The major findings revealed that the average area under hybrid paddy cultivation was 1.14 ha on small farms, 1.94 ha on large farms with an average of 1.62 ha. The major component of cost was found to be hired labour estimated at Rs. 20592 per ha on overall farms. Value of seed was another major cost component as the cost of seed was estimated at Rs. 6346 per ha on overall farms. The productivity of hybrid paddy came out to be 67.14 q/ha on overall farms. The returns over total cost were Rs. 31802/ha on overall farms. The highest output-input ratio was on small farms (1.47:1) as compared to large farms (1.16:1) and it was 1.34:1 at overall farms. Maximum technological gap in hybrid paddy cultivation was in fertilizers use as excess amounts of chemical fertilizers were used. Number of irrigations was also higher than recommended rate on overall farm situations. The hybrid paddy production was found to be 108.84 q per farm on overall farms and 99.85 per cent of which was meant for sale in the market. The hybrid paddy growers followed three major marketing channels, out which channel-I (Producer- Govt. procurement agency-Miller-Govt. agency-fair prices shops-Consumer) was found to be major marketing channel disposing 64.38 per cent of total marketed surplus. The low efficiency index in channel-II was reported due to many market functionaries involved between producer and consumer. Non-availability of proper market and lack of milling facilities and labour shortage, high wage rate and tractor charges were the main problems reported by growers in the study area.ThesisItem Open Access Economic analysis of tomato under protected and open environment in Kangra District, H.P.(palampur, 2017-07-15) Mehta, Kanika; Guleria, J.S.The present study pertained to economic analysis of tomato under protected and open environment in Kangra District, H.P. This study is based upon the data collected for the Agricultural Year 2015-16 from 60 tomato (30 open-field and 30 polyhouse) growers, selected through proportional allocation method from Baijnath and Bhedu Mahadev blocks of Kangra District, Himachal Pradesh. The study reveals that under open-field/ natural conditions, among vegetables, the average yield of tomato crop was found to be the highest in the study area. Under protected conditions, the maximum cropped area was found to be under tomato (52.59%) followed by capsicum (21.04%) and cucumber (14.83%). Human labour was found to be the most important component of tomato cultivation under both open-field and protected conditions, accounting for 73.43 per cent and 82.68 per cent of the total variable cost, respectively. Under open-field conditions, the net returns over variable cost was Rs. 2,32,282/ha and output-input ratio stood at 1.50:1. Under protected conditions, it was found that all types of costs viz. variable, fixed and total costs declined with the size of the holding, mainly due to economies of scale. Further, it was found that the returns over total cost and variable cost were higher on small farms in comparison to large farms. The output-input ratio stood at 1.15:1, on overall basis. Protected cultivation contributed 10.68 per cent in the total annual gross household income of the polyhouse growers, at overall level. Large polyhouse category earned higher proportion (14.52%) as compared to small category (7.02%). The income variability of polyhouse growers was found to be less in comparison to the open-field growers. Unavailability of improved varieties at the time of sowing, the high cost of improved varieties, lack of awareness regarding the high yielding and resistant varieties, lack of storage facilities, etc. were the major problems faced by open-field growers in the study area. In case of polyhouse growers, the lack of knowledge about site, orientation, material etc., non-serious approach of construction companies, problem of repairs/spare parts, lack of technical knowhow and training, inadequate extension and advisory services, etc. were the major problems. The study has suggested that efforts are required for creating cold storage facilities to increase the shelf life of tomato. Aside from prolonging the shelf life of the crop, product diversification through processing may enhance the income of tomato growers in the study area. There is a dire need to bring polyhouses under insurance cover to make the scheme more sustainable in future.
