An Economic Analysis of Paddy Seed Production in Mau District of Eastern Uttar Pradesh

Paddy is an important cereal crop of the country and Uttar Pradesh, which is second largest producer of paddy in the country with 11.99 per cent share. The current study was conducted on primary data collected from 50 farmers from Mau district of Uttar Pradesh during the agricultural year 2017-18. The fixed and variable cost ratio in paddy seed production was 20:80. Human labour was the major cost component (42.21 per cent of total cost) followed by manures and fertilizers (11.85 per cent), bullock & machine labour (11.80 per cent), plant protection chemicals (4.53 per cent), irrigation (3.18 per cent) and seed (1.99 per cent). Total cost incurred in seed production of paddy was Rs. 51882 per hectare, while the net and gross returns were Rs. 28506 and Rs. 80388 per hectare respectively with the BC ratio 1.55. Total cost pertinent to paddy certified seed production was 11.36 per cent higher than grain production. The gross return was 18.92 per cent higher in seed production (Rs. 80388/ha) than grain production (Rs. 67600/ha). Net return from seed production of paddy was 35.66 per cent (Rs. 28506/ha) higher than grain production (Rs. 21012/ha). According to cost C2, cost of production of paddy grain and seed calculated to Rs. 1096 and Rs. 1231 per quintal. The return to the farmers on cost C2 was 45.07 and 55.0 per cent above cost of production for paddy grain and seed respectively. Similarly, cost of production according to cost A2 & FL (Family Labour) of paddy grain and seed calculated to Rs. 863 and Rs. 996 per quintal. The return to the farmers on cost A2 & FL was 84.24 and 91.57 per cent above cost of production for paddy grain and seed respectively. Production of paddy seed showed higher profitability to the farmers with encouraging net returns, which implies that the quality seed production area could be increased for higher income generation.