PROFITABILITY AND RESOURCE USE EFFICIENCY OF BRINJAL CULTIVATION IN SOME SELECTED AREAS OF SATKHIRA DISTRICT

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to know the socio economic characteristics of the farmers in the study area; to explore the profitability and factors affecting the profitability of brinjal cultivation; to determine the resources use efficiency of brinjal cultivation and to identify the problem faced by brinjal farmers. The study was conducted in two villages of Sonabaria union under Kalaroa upazila and two villages of Dhandia union under Tala upazila of Satkhira district. Data were collected by using interview schedule from the randomly selected 80 respondents during 1

January to 28 th February, 2019. After analyzing the data, the gross returns per hectare was Tk. 224100 and Tk. 233010 for brinjal farmers in Kalaroa and Tala upazila respectively. It was observed that per hectare net return was Tk. 109064 and Tk. 114934 for brinjal farmer in Kalaroa and Tala upazila respectively and per hectare gross margin was Tk. 156814 and Tk. 165084 in Kalaroa and Tala upazila respectively. Total cost of brinjal cultivation was calculated at Tk. 115036 and Tk. 118076 per hectare in Kalaroa and Tala upazila respectively. Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR) was found 1.95 and 1.97 in Kalaroa and Tala upazila respectively. Thus, it was found that brinjal production was highly profitable. From Cobb-Douglas production function analysis, it was observed that the coefficients of cost of power tiller and animal labor, manure, urea, cost of pesticides and cost of irrigation were positively significant at different level of probability for brinjal production; cost of human labor was negative and insignificant and the coefficients of seedling, TSP and cost of MP was insignificant. Resource use efficiency indicated that all of the resources were under-utilization for brinjal cultivation except over-utilization of human labor cost, and seedling cost. So there was a positive effect of key factors in the production process of brinjal cultivation. The farmers replied that high price of inputs were the most acute problem followed by attack of brinjal diseases and lack of marketing facilities were the most important problems in the study areas. Government should take necessary steps to overcome this situation. st