Cost - benefit aspects of mechanised farming practice: A study in Odisha

Agriculture is the life of rural people in India. Being a multidimensional enterprise, its importance is felt in every policy action issues in India. More than 70% of India's population are depending on agriculture and its allied activities. The rising demand for food grain, alarming food insecurity and growing unemployment concern a lot to statesmen, planners and the people itself from mid 60s of last century to till date. The green revolution not only takes the Indian agriculture to a new height but it brought the revolutionary changes in improved farming practices in the country. Farm mechanisation serves a lot to fulfil the demand of modernisation of farming sector. In India, mechanised farm practice is an age old tradition but the difference is only the matter of its updated and cost effective aspect. Whether mechanisation decreases employment or widens employment opportunity was truly pinching into the mind of this researcher. This paper has attempted to examine the cost-benefit aspect of mechanisation in agriculture sector. It is a descriptive study based on both primary and secondary data. Secondary data are collected from Ministry of Agriculture, Government of Odisha while primary data are collected in field survey by testing of questionnaires and direct observation. The simple random sampling technique is used for selection of district, block, villages and sample households. The total sample size for this study is 120. The data are analysed by applying simple statistical tools like tables, charts, diagrams and averages. The conclusion is drawn on basis of field survey, FGD and case study information. The study found that farm mechanisation is benefitting in multifarious ways by reducing drudgery, time and costs of cultivation. It enables the farming households to utilise the surplus time in other productive works. It is very cost effective as it reduced around 35% of cultivation cost and helps in increasing cropping intensity and productivity of land and labour. The mechanisation process needs rapid expansion to mitigate the food production and crisis arising in agriculture owing to high risk. The further research is required as it has been an emerging issue over years.