Insecticide resistance management technology for sustainable cotton cultivation in Maharashtra: An economic evaluation

The present study was undertaken to assess the economic sustainability of insecticide resistance management (IRM) technology of cotton cultivation in Nagpur and Wardha districts of Maharashtra. Asample of 100 farmers comprising of 50 IRM farmers and 50 non-IRM farmers were randomly selected and interviewed personally during 2008–09. Higher gross return of 29964 ha⁻¹ on IRM farms against 22378 ha⁻¹ on non-IRM farms, with higher output of 13.73 q ha⁻¹ on IRM against 10.33 q ha⁻¹ on non-IRM farms were realised. Similarly, higher B: C ratio (1.73) was realized for IRM farms than non-IRM farms (1.29). The expenditure on plant protection chemicals (PPC) on non-IRM farms ( 1721 ha-¹) was three times than that of IRM farms ( 489 ha⁻¹) as non-IRM farmers solely relied on chemical pesticides for pest control. Furthermore, the cost incurred on chemical fertilizers was also higher in case of non-IRM farms ( 1865 ha⁻¹) compared to IRM farms ( 1397 ha⁻¹). There was no significant contribution of chemical fertilizers and PPC on yield in case of non-IRM farms indicating their inefficient use. There was positive influence of PPC and IRM components on IRM farms. So IRM technologies were beneficial from farmer's point of view for increasing cotton productivity and farmers income in sustainable manner.