Karnataka J. Agric. Sci.

, 24 (4) : (467-470) 2011

Economic analysis of energy use in paddy cultivation under irrigated situations *

P. S. PRASANNA KUMAR AND L. B. HUGAR Department of Agricultural Economics College of Agriculture, UAS, Raichur- 584102, India Email : shiprasannamk415@gmail.com (Received : September, 2010)
Abstract: The study examined the energy use pattern in paddy cultivation under irrigated situations of Raichur district. Fertilizer was found to be the dominant source of energy contributing 3,154 mega joules (MJ) per acre which accounted for 55.53 per cent of the total energy utilized in paddy cultivation. The total energy utilized for paddy cultivation by small farmers (6,237MJ/acre) was significantly higher than that of medium (5,501MJ/acre) and large (5,303MJ/acre) farmers. The operation wise energy use pattern in paddy cultivation showed that among all the operations, ploughing consumed highest amount of energy (308MJ/acre) which accounted to 20.58 per cent of the total energy utilized for all operations in paddy cultivation. The total cost incurred per unit of input energy was ` 2.98 per MJ in paddy cultivation. Key words: Energy use efficiency, energy cost, irrigated paddy, net energy returns, output energy

Introduction Agriculture is the most important sector in Indian economy and it is basically an energy conversion industry. The energy use pattern for crops has varied under different agro-climatic zones. The use of energy in crop production depends on the availability of energy sources and the capacity of the farmers. Agricultural productivity is proportional to energy input in the form of improved seeds, fertilizers, chemicals, irrigation and mechanization including management practices (Kalbande and More, 2008). Energy is one of the most valuable inputs in crop production. It is invested in various forms such as mechanical power (farm machines), human labour, animal draft, chemical fertilizer, pesticides, herbicides etc. The amount of energy used in agricultural production, processing and distribution should be significantly higher in order to feed the expanding population and to meet other social and economic goals. Sufficient availability of the right energy and its effective and efficient use are prerequisites for improved agricultural production. It was realized that crop yields and food supplies are directly linked to energy (Stout, 1990). Intensive cultivation, as a result of introduction of high yielding varieties in mid 1960s and the urgent need for securing the food security for Indias teaming millions, required high energy inputs and better management practices. All the farming operations in crop production require energy inputs in various forms and in varying magnitude. Besides, there is also variation in the use of energy from one farmer to another even for the same set of farming operations (Halim et al., 1999). In recent years, the use of mechanical power is increasing and that of animal power decreasing in agriculture. It is argued that animal component is the important component of agriculture for sustainability of the system. The inadequate supply of human labour especially during peak seasons affects various farm operations. Therefore, it is necessary to examine the energy use pattern, source of energy and their profitability so that suitable policy frame work can be formulated. Therefore, an attempt was

made to assess the energy use pattern in paddy cultivation under irrigated situations of Raichur district, Karnataka state. Material and methods The present study was carried out in Raichur district of Karnataka state during 2009-10. A multi-stage random sampling procedure was adopted for the selection of the taluks, villages and farmers. In the first stage, three taluks were selected based on the highest area under irrigation namely Sindhanur (59,334 ha), Manvi (44,392 ha) and Raichur (17,894 ha). In the second stage, three villages were selected based on highest irrigated area under paddy cultivation from each of the selected taluks. In the final stage, ten farmers from each selected village comprising of small, medium and large farmers were selected randomly. Thus, the total sample size constituted 90 farmers. Energy from inputs and outputs were calculated by converting the physical units of inputs and outputs into respective energy units by using appropriate energy equivalents to find out the energy use pattern. Energy equivalent have been standardized for use in the All India Co-ordinated Research Project (AICRP) on Energy Requirement in Agricultural Sector (ERAS) for calculation of energy requirement (Anonymous, 1996; Anonymous, 1999). Energy use efficiency: Agriculture is not only a consumer of energy but also producer of energy in the form of energy output. To compare how efficiently different crops convert input energy into output energy is called energy use efficiency and defined as the ratio of output energy to input energy. Output energy (MJ /acre) Output input energy ratio = Input energy (MJ /acre) Specific energy (MJ/kg) Energy productivity (kg/MJ) = Net energy return (MJ/acre) = = Input energy (MJ) Crop yield (Kg) Crop yield (Kg) Input energy (MJ) Output energy (MJ/acre) Input energy (MJ/acre)

* Part of the M.Sc. (Agri.) thesis submitted by the first author to the University of Agricultural Sciences, Raichur - 584102, India
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Karnataka J. Agric. Sci.,24 (4) : 2011

Table 1. Distribution of sources of energy use in cultivation of paddy under different size of farmers Source Small farmer Energy (MJ/acre) Human Draft animals Machine Seeds Farm Yard Manure Fertilizers Micronutrients Growth Regulators Weedicides Plant protection chemicals Total 722.24 539.20 651.77 430.50 650.57 3120.39 9.38 0.50 11.43 101.30 6237.28 Percentage 11.58 8.64 10.45 6.90 10.43 50.03 0.15 0.02 0.18 1.62 100.00 Medium farmer Energy (MJ/acre) 608.30 87.42 686.73 416.08 420.69 3149.42 10.34 0.12 13.33 108.41 5500.84 Percentage 11.06 1.59 12.48 7.56 7.65 57.25 0.20 0.00 0.24 1.97 100.00 Large farmer Energy (MJ/acre) 604.19 59.39 816.67 369.74 86.66 3192.90 26.94 0.64 19.41 127.27 5303.81 Percentage 11.39 1.12 15.40 6.97 1.63 60.20 0.51 0.01 0.37 2.40 100.00 Aggregate Energy (MJ/acre) 644.91 228.67 718.39 405.44 385.97 3154.24 15.55 0.42 14.72 112.33 5680.64 Percentage 11.35 4.03 12.65 7.14 6.79 55.53 0.26 0.01 0.26 1.98 100.00

Results and discussion Energy use pattern in paddy cultivation under different sizes of land holdings (Table 1) clearly indicated that fertilizer was found to be the dominant source of energy contributing 3,154mega joules (MJ) per acre which accounted for 55.53 per cent of the total energy utilized in paddy cultivation. The contribution of other major sources of energy which followed fertilizers were machines (718.39 MJ/acre), human labour (644.91MJ/acre) and seeds (405.44 MJ/acre) with a share of 12.65, 11.35 and 7.14 per cents, respectively. Fertilizer was dominant source of energy in all size groups of farmers but it increased with increase in farm size, which is mainly due to investment capacity of the farmers and lack of knowledge among the farmers about the recommended package of practices. Therefore, it is essential to educate farmers about use of recommended package of practices. The average energy used for paddy cultivation by small farmers (6,237 MJ/acre) was found to be significantly higher than that of medium (5,500.84 MJ/acre) and large (5,303 MJ/acre) farmers.

Similar observation was reported by Pawar et al. (2002). The excessive use of human and draft animal energy sources by small farmers resulted in higher total energy use than that of medium and large farmers in paddy cultivation. Therefore, small farmers may be educated and encouraged to use optimum combinations of draft animals and machine energy in different operations in paddy cultivation so as to optimize the energy use and minimize the cost of cultivation. The energy utilization from draft animal source decreased with increase in the farm size. But in contrast, mechanical energy utilization increased with increase in farm size. It means that with increase in farm size, draft animal energy was replaced by mechanical energy indicating that large farmers were more dependent on mechanical energy than the small farmers. This is mainly because large farmers can not maintain animals due to scarcity of labour. On the other hand, large farmers can afford to use machines in crop production. Operation wise energy use pattern in paddy cultivation

Table 2. Operation wise energy use pattern in cultivation of paddy under different size of farmers Operations Small farmer Energy (MJ/acre) Ploughing Clod crushing and smoothening Puddling Seed bed preparation Transportation of manure Application of manure Transportation of fertilizers Application of fertilizers Sowing of seeds in nursery Removal of seedlings Transplanting Weeding/ weedicides application Application of pesticides Application of growth regulator Application of micronutrients Irrigation Harvesting Transportation of produce Total 506.13 94.66 231.00 6.80 84.19 29.82 84.19 32.87 0.15 19.34 104.44 143.64 89.27 2.42 12.09 154.76 65.42 128.92 1790.10 Percentage 28.27 5.29 12.90 0.38 4.70 1.67 4.70 1.84 0.01 1.08 5.83 8.02 4.99 0.14 0.68 8.65 3.65 7.20 100.00 Medium farmer Energy (MJ/acre) 177.27 94.96 270.17 3.44 73.31 57.26 73.32 27.17 1.32 12.62 103.50 168.84 98.13 0.88 3.52 46.59 64.10 61.64 1338.03 468 Percentage 13.25 7.10 20.19 0.26 5.48 4.28 5.48 2.03 0.10 0.94 7.74 12.62 7.33 0.06 0.26 3.48 4.79 4.61 100.00 Large farmer Aggregate Percentage 20.58 6.01 16.38 0.27 5.68 3.09 4.01 1.89 0.06 0.85 6.94 11.82 6.04 0.08 0.42 5.58 4.28 6.02 100.00 Energy Percentage Energy (MJ/acre) (MJ/acre) 240.80 80.38 234.72 1.70 97.62 51.76 22.76 25.05 0.91 6.32 103.94 218.59 84.00 0.04 3.28 49.05 62.82 79.52 1363.25 17.66 5.90 17.22 0.12 7.16 3.80 1.67 1.84 0.07 0.46 7.62 16.03 6.16 0.01 0.24 3.60 4.61 5.83 100.00 308.07 90.00 245.3 3.98 85.04 46.28 60.09 28.36 0.80 12.76 103.96 177.02 90.47 1.11 6.30 83.47 64.11 90.03 1497.15

Economic analysis of energy ...................................

Table 3. Operation wise distribution of output- input energy in paddy cultivation Operations Ploughing Clod crushing and smoothening Puddling Seed bed preparation Transportation of manure Application of manure Transportation of fertilizers Application of fertilizers Sowing of seeds in nursery Removal of seedlings Transplanting Weeding/ weedicides application Application of pesticides Application of growth regulator Application of micronutrients Irrigation Harvesting Transportation of produce Total Energy (MJ/acre) 308.07 90.00 245.30 3.98 85.04 46.28 60.09 28.36 0.80 12.76 103.96 177.02 90.47 1.11 6.30 83.47 64.11 90.03 1497.15 Percentage 20.58 6.01 16.38 0.27 5.68 3.09 4.01 1.89 0.05 0.85 6.94 11.82 6.04 0.07 0.42 5.58 4.28 6.01 100.00 Energy use efficiency (Out-Input energy ratio) 161.44 552.59 202.75 12495.85 584.82 1074.62 827.65 1753.65 62166.87 3897.61 478.39 280.95 549.72 44804.95 7894.21 595.82 775.75 552.41 139650.06 Percentage 0.12 0.40 0.15 8.95 0.42 0.77 0.59 1.26 44.52 2.79 0.34 0.20 0.39 32.08 5.65 0.43 0.56 0.40 100.00

Table 4. Costs of different sources of input energy use in paddy cultivation Source Energy Cost of Cost/ use input energy use
(MJ/acre) (` /acre) (`/MJ)

Human Draft animals Machine Seeds Farm Yard Manure Fertilizers Micronutrients Growth Regulators Weedicides Plant protection chemicals Total

644.91 228.67 718.39 405.44 385.97 3154.24 15.55 0.42 14.72 112.33 5680.64

4164.95 1181.98 5809.66 736.63 858.31 3020.23 253.83 36.20 191.08 651.73 16904.58

6.46 5.17 8.09 1.82 2.22 0.96 16.32 86.20 12.98 5.80 2.98

under different size of land holdings (Table 2) showed that total energy utilized for all the operations in paddy cultivation was 1,497.15 MJ per acre. Among all the operations, ploughing consumed highest amount of energy (308.07 MJ/acre) which accounted to 20.58 per cent of the total energy utilized for all operations in paddy cultivation. The results of the study are in conformity with those of Singh et al. (1976) which observed that consumption of energy was highest in land preparation.

However, the total operational energy used by small farmers (1,790.10 MJ/acre) was more than that of medium (1,338.03 MJ/ acre) and large (1,363.25 MJ/acre) farmers. The availability of family labour and draft animals in small farmers might have resulted in excessive use of human and draft animal energy in different operations in paddy cultivation which needs to be rationalized by proper awareness and education. Similar observation was reported by Giriappa (1986). Operation wise distribution of output- input energy in paddy cultivation (Table 3) revealed that the operational energy use efficiency was found to be the highest in sowing of seeds in nursery in paddy cultivation (44.52%). This might be mainly due to optimum energy use for sowing of seeds in nursery in paddy cultivation. Application of growth regulators (32.08%), seed bed preparation (8.95%) and removal of seedlings (2.79 %) were other major operations having higher energy use efficiency in paddy cultivation. Costs of different sources of input energy use in paddy cultivation were analyzed to understand the nature of inputs in relation to their energy content. Among the sources of input energy, the cost incurred per unit of input energy in growth regulators (`. 86.20/MJ) was found to be the highest in paddy cultivation (Table 4). The farmers have used higher doses of

Table 5. Cost and returns of input and output energy in paddy cultivation Particulars Total Input Energy (MJ/acre) Total output energy (MJ/acre) Total cost of input energy (`/acre) Grossreturns of output energy (`/acre) Net energyreturns (`/acre) Energy Benefit cost ratio Cost/unit of input energy (`/MJ) Returns/unit of output energy(` MJ) Small farmer 6237.28 54812.22 168767 51424 34547 3.05 2.71 0.94 469 Medium farmer 5500.84 49621.86 16981 44942 27961 2.65 3.09 0.91 Large farmer 5303.81 44766 16856 39768 22912 2.36 3.18 0.89 Aggregate 5680.64 49733.50 16905 45378 28473 2.68 2.98 0.91

Karnataka J. Agric. Sci.,24 (4) : 2011 growth regulators resulting in higher per unit cost of input energy. Therefore, farmer needs to be educated on use of the recommend doses of growth regulators in crop production. The cost per unit of other major sources of input energy was ` 16.32 per MJ in micronutrients followed by ` 12.98 per MJ in weedicides and ` 8.09 per MJ in machine. The total cost of input energy was found to be higher in case of medium farmers (` 16, 981/acre) than that of small (` 16,877 / acre) and large (` 16,856/acre) farmes (Table 5) which might be due to higher doses of comlex fertilizer use than the recommended level by medium farmers. Therefore it is necessary to educate
References Anonymous, 1996, All India Co-ordinated Research Project on Energy Requirement in Agril. Sector, Univ. Agric. Sci., Dharwad, p. 6-7. Anonymous, 1999, Proc. XV Annual Workshop on Energy Requirement in Agricultural Sector. Tech. Rep. No. CIAE/ERAS/99/229., CIAE, Bhopal. Giriappa, S., 1986, Energy Environment in Agriculture, Ashish Publishing House, New Dehi, p. 42-71. Halim, R. A., Saikia, H. C. and Bhowmick, B. C., 1999, Pattern of Energy Use in Crop Production: A critical analysis in Golaghat district of Assam. Agric. Econ. Res. Rev., 12(1): 1-6. Kalbande, S. R. and More, G. R., 2008, Assessment of Energy Requirement for Cultivation of Kharif and Rabi Sorghum. Karnataka J. Agric. Sci., 21(3): 416-420. Pawar, P. P., Dangat, S. B., Birari, K. S. and Kasar, D. V., 2002, Farm Level Approach to Energy System. Agric. Econ. Res. Rev., 15(2): 123-149. Singh, R. I., Prashad, V. and Singh, R. K., 1976, Energy Requirement on Farms Multiple Cropping in Central Uttar Pradesh. Indian J. Agric. Econ., 31(3): 24. Stout, B. A., 1990, Handbook of Energy for World Agriculture. Elsevier Applied Science, London.

the farmers to use the recommended fertilizer application so as to increase the energy use efficiency and to minimige the cost of coltivtion. However, the net energy retuerns was considerably higher in case of small farmers (` 34,547/acre)as compared to the medium (` 27,961/acre) and large (` 22,912/acre)farmers in view of the batter management practices by small farmers. The medium and large farmers have used higher fertilizer energy resulting in decline in the total net energyreturn. In view of this, it is reggerted to medium and large farmers to use optimum doses of fertilizer and adopt better mamagement practices in different operations.

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