This paper reviews the dynamics of tenant farming/reforms to study the fiscal viability and input use productivity of paddy cultivation for tenant and owner farmers. The study is based on the primary data collected from 180 farmers (120 tenants and 60 owners) spread over all the major agroclimatic zones of Punjab in 2017–18. The operational cost of paddy cultivation per hectare was found to be Rs. 29, 630 in the case of tenant farmers, slightly lower than the Rs. 30, 077 for owner farmers. The returns over variable cost was found to be higher on tenant farms (Rs. 92, 169/ha) than on owner farms (Rs. 89, 673/ha). The total cost of cultivation (C2) was lower in the case of tenant farmers (Rs. 83, 800/ha) than for owner farmers (Rs. 87, 122/ha), resulting in higher profitability for tenant farmers (Rs. 37, 998/ha) in relation to (Rs. 32, 628/ha) owner farmers. The regression analysis brought out that input use productivity on tenant farms was relatively efficient, especially in terms of micronutrients and other chemical fertilizers.
