RAJ KUMAR, S.S. CHAHAL, J.M. SINGH AND RAM SINGH

INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS AND STATISTICS Volume 2 Issue 2 (September, 2011) Page : 282-287 Received : May, 2011; Accepted : August, 2011 Research Paper Production and marketing problems of maize in Punjab RAJ KUMAR, S.S. CHAHAL, J.M. SINGH AND RAM SINGH See end of the article for authors affiliations Correspondence to : RAJ KUMAR Department of Economics and Sociology, Punjab Agricultural University, LUDHIANA (PUNJAB) INDIA rajkumar@pau.edu ABSTRACT The wide adoption gaps of recommended technology of maize at the farm level are due to its poor dissemination to the farmers. Besides, low price, lack of proper marketing, availability of seed at much higher prices and technical know-how were reported as the serious constraints in attaining the net returns from maize equivalent to its main competing crop paddy. Other problems were inadequate availability of quality seed, lack of early maturing varieties (needed for drought management), weeds and unbalanced fertilizer use. The agricultural research institutions may initiate seed multiplication programme to sell it at reasonable prices, and hence pass on the benefits of research to farmers confronted with poverty and water scarcity. This will help in saving the farmers from the exploitation of private seed companies. The innovative technology disseminations method should also be implemented. Due to the lack of storage facilities the farmers have no option besides selling the produce immediately after harvesting at lower prices due to higher moisture content in the grains because they cannot dry their produce in the market yard as there is not enough space for it. The storage facilities may help to encourage maize cultivation in the state. In addition, developing innovative institutional arrangements to strengthen production-marketing-processing linkages to benefit producers and consumers is the need of the hour because market access also poses a major obstacle in realizing higher profit margins from maize crop. Kumar, Raj, Chahal, S.S., Singh, J.M. and Singh, Ram (2011). Production and marketing problems of maize in Punjab, Internat. Res. J. agric. Eco. & Stat., 2 (2) : 282-287. Key words : Technological adoption gaps, Maize marketing, Constraints, Procurement, Storage, Prices INTRODUCTION Maize occupies a place of pride amongst the coarse cereal crops in India and it is emerging as third most important crop after rice and wheat. It has been estimated that this crop has contributed Rs. 6000 crores annually to India s GDP and generates 4500 lakh man days of employment (Puri, 2001). Maize is gradually spreading to non-traditional maize growing areas (to meet increasing household and feed industry demands), and its uses are also changing. Though the majority of the rural population is still using maize as a staple food, the higher-income stratum prefers it for soup and vegetable purposes. It has been estimated that the demand for maize in the developing countries will overtake the demand for wheat and rice by 2020 A.D. Asian maize demand will rise from 138 million tonnes in 1993 to 243 million tonnes, accounting for 60 per cent of the global increase in maize consumption by 2020 A.D. (Kumar and Singh, 2003). Non-adoption of HYVs, lack of varieties resistant to insect pests, diseases, drought, water logging, etc., lack of suitable cultivars for late sowing, non-availability of quality seeds, non-adoption of plant protection measures, lack of price stability and procurement by government agencies, poor storage facilities and lack of crop insurance facility are the major constraints that affect maize production. To stabilize the prices, there should be diversification of maize utilization in food, beverages, starch, cattle and poultry feed industries. Concerted efforts are needed for seed production to meet the requirements with facilities for insurance and bank loan. The procurement of the produce should be regulated with support price by the government, so that the maize produced is not put to distress sale (Akhtar et al., 2000). Technical constraints, attack of insect/pests, diseases, inadequate and untimely supply of inputs, unaffordable prices of inputs, risk in production and price, poor rural infrastructure, non-availability of high quality seeds at an affordable price and selling of sub standard seeds at a high price were identified as production constraints that cause significant production losses. Apart from these, poor marketing facilities, inefficient procurement system coupled with predominance of local traders, reduces the profitability of the farmers. The poor storage and transport facilities HIND AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH AND TRAINING INSTITUTE

RAJ KUMAR, S.S. CHAHAL, J.M. SINGH AND RAM SINGH add to these problems (Datta et al., 2005). In Punjab, paddy-wheat crop rotation has created various ecological and environmental problems among which decline in underground water is the major one. In order to save precious ground water, there is a need to shift area from paddy to other crops. So, maize cultivation can be an alternative for diversification strategy. Area under maize crop in Punjab has gradually declined. In spite of its good productivity, there is no proper mechanism for marketing of maize produce in the state. Besides, the crop also faces various production and marketing constraints which must be taken care of for its popularization among the Punjab farmers. In the back drop of this, the present study was initiated to identify the various biotic, technological, institutional and marketing problems which hinder the growth of maize crop in the state. MATERIALS AND METHODS The present study is based on primary data collected from 300 sample maize growers in Punjab. A multistage random sampling technique was employed to draw a representative sample. At the first stage, all the districts of Punjab were categorized into two strata on the basis of maize productivity i.e. districts having productivity more than the state average and districts having productivity less than the state average. One district each was selected randomly from these two categories. The districts so selected were Hoshiarpur and Nawan Shahar from the above said categories. Then, two blocks each from the sample districts were selected having highest area under maize. At the third stage, a cluster of three to four villages from each block was selected randomly. The farmers of the selected villages were categorized into three groups on the basis of their operational holdings viz., large farmers (> 4 ha), medium farmers (2-4 ha) and small farmers (< 2 ha). A sample of 75 maize growers from each selected block was drawn following the probability proportional to size sampling technique (Table 1). The primary data from the selected maize growers were collected through a specially structured interview schedule for this purpose. The information so collected relates to the various biotic, technological, institutional, infrastructural and marketing problems faced in the production and marketing of maize. RESULTS AND DATA ANALYSIS The details of major problems hampering the production and affecting the marketing of maize in Punjab are given below: Biotic constraints: Compared to most cereals, maize faces fewer biotic constraints to production. The results regarding biotic problems in maize cultivation are presented in Table 2. Weeds are the major problem during the rainy season reported by 68.33 per cent farmers. In the absence of appropriate crop management practices, yield declined due to weed infestation in maize crop may be as high as 50 to 75 per cent. Most of the farmers have to perform almost all crop management operations twice to control weeds. The problem of attack of insect-pests was found to be on 59 per cent farms while that of rats and termites was observed on 38.67 per cent farms. Farmers reported that caterpillars, stem borers and termites seriously affect plant growth and maize production. Rats also severely damage maize ears in all the areas. Similarly, the problem of diseases was also serious as reported by 41 per cent farmers. Technological adoption gaps: The information regarding various technological Table 1: Number of maize growers selected from the sample districts District/Block Small Medium Large Hoshiarpur Overall Bhunga 15 (19.83) 25 (34.05) 35 (46.12) 75 (100.00) Mahilpur 18 (24.50) 29 (38.25) 28 (37.25) 75 (100.00) Total 33 (22.02) 54 (36.01) 63 (41.97) 150 (100.00) Nawan Shahar Balachaur 25 (33.52) 19 (25.82) 31 (40.66) 75 (100.00) Nawan Shahar 20 (19.90) 23 (30.10) 32 (43.37) 75 (100.00) Total 45 (30.00) 42 (28.00) 63 (42.00) 150 (100.00) Grand total 78 (26.00) 96 (32.00) 126 (42.00) 300 (100.00) 283

PRODUCTION & MARKETING PROBLEMS OF MAIZE Table 2: Biotic problems faced in maize cultivation in Punjab Small (78) Medium (96) Weeds 52 (66.67) 65 (67.71) 88 (69.84) 205 (68.33) Insect pests 46 (58.97) 58 (60.42) 73 (57.94) 177 (59.00) Diseases 27 (34.62) 39 (40.63) 57 (45.24) 123 (41.00) Rats and termites 27 (34.62) 36 (37.50) 53 (42.06) 116 (38.67) Large (126) Total (300) adoption gaps such as seed treatment, time of sowing, use of recommended level of inputs, etc. is presented in Table 3. The recommended seed rate of maize is 20 kg per hectare. However, 52 per cent sample farmers were found to be using higher than recommended seed rate. The percentage of small, medium and large farmers who used more than recommended seed rate was found to be 48.72, 47.92 and 57.14 per cent, respectively. The reasons behind using higher seed rate were the doubtful germination, mortality of plants and better performance of higher plant population as reported by 40, 31.40 and 5.70 per cent of the sample farmers, respectively. It was found that 23.81 per cent farmers at the overall level have not treated the seed before sowing the crop. The reasons behind not treating the seed before sowing were lack of knowledge (44.12 per cent), negligence (26.47 per cent) and non-availability of material in required small quantities (29.41 per cent). Further, it was observed that 19 per cent of the sample farmers have sown the crop after recommended time of sowing. Major reason put forth by 43.80 per cent of those who had sown late, was that land was not free in Table 3: Technological gaps in maize cultivation in Punjab Small (78) Medium (96) Large (126) Overall (300) 1. Use of higher seed rate than recommended 38(48.72) 46(47.92) 72(57.14) 156(52.00) Reasons for using higher seed rate Doubtful germination of seed 4(36.40) 6(42.80) 4(40.00) 14(40.00) Mortality of plants 5(45.40) 4(28.60) 2(20.00) 11(31.40) Better performance of higher plant population - - 2(20.00) 2(5.70) 2. No seed treatment before sowing 23(29.49) 15(15.63) 30(23.81) 30(23.81) Reasons for not applying the seed treatment Lack of Knowledge 9(39.13) 6(40) 15(50) 30(44.12) Negligence 6(26.09) 4(26.67) 8(26.67) 18(26.47) Non-availability of material in required small quantities 8(34.78) 5(33.33) 7(23.33) 20 (29.41) 3. Sowing after the recommended time 21(17.80) 10(10.90) 26(28.30) 57(19.00) Reasons for late sowing Land not free 7(33.30) 3(30.00) 15(57.70) 25(43.80) Insufficient moisture 5(23.80) 3(30.00) 8(30.80) 16(28.10) Assured irrigation lacking 9(42.90) 40(40.00) 3(11.50) 16(28.10) Tractor not available at sowing time 3(37.50) - - 3(12.00) 4. Use of un-recommended dosage of fertilizers 29(23.02) 25(26.04) 44(56.41) 98(32.67) Less than recommended 21(26.92) 17(17.71) 12(9.52) 50(16.67) More than recommended 8(10.26) 8(8.33) 32(25.40) 48(16.00) Reasons for using un recommended dosage of fertilizers Not aware of recommendations 16(20.51) 16(16.67) 25(19.84) 57(19.00) Unsatisfactory recommendations 10(12.82) 7(7.29) 14(11.11) 31(10.33) Non-availability of fertilizers 3(3.85) 2(2.08) 3(2.38) 8(2.67) 284

RAJ KUMAR, S.S. CHAHAL, J.M. SINGH AND RAM SINGH time. This constraint was found to be more common in case of large farmers. Insufficient moisture and lack of assured irrigation were other reasons put forth by 28.10 per cent of the respondents. The non-availability of hired tractor at the time of sowing forced 37.50 per cent of the small farmers to sow the crop late. As far as the use of fertilizers is concerned, nearly 33 per cent of the sample farmers used un-recommended doses of fertilizers as 10.33 per cent of the farmers were of the view that they have no knowledge about the recommendations. The nonavailability of fertilizers especially DAP and Zinc sulphate was reported by 2.67 per cent of the farmers. Institutional and infrastructural problems: The details of major problems relating to institutional and infrastructural facilities are presented in Table 4. The condition of roads which connect the farm fields to the market was found to be satisfactory. Since, Punjab has fully developed and vast network of roads, the connectivity of villages to the nearby markets is no longer a constraint. The sample villages of both the selected districts were connected to market with the good metallic roads. As far as electricity is concerned its inadequate and untimely supply was reported by 71.33 per cent of respondents and was considered as a major hurdle in carrying out farm operations in time. The farmers had the opinion that they were ready to pay for electricity if its timely and adequate supply is assured. The free electricity to the farmers has no advantage until is provided sufficiently and timely. This irregular supply forced the farmers to irrigate their fields with the help of diesel operated electric generators which consume 3 to 4 litres of diesel per hour resulting in increase in the cost of production. Further, the farmers wanted that the new electric connections should be provided with less formalities and simple procedure. The farmers who applied for new electric motor connections were waiting from 2 to 3 years. More than 50 per cent of the farmers found the irrigation facilities as unsatisfactory in spite of the fact that the entire cropped area of the selected maize growers was irrigated by means of tube wells. The small farmers were found to be more unsatisfied than large and medium farmers. Besides the inadequate and untimely supply of electricity, the other problems reported regarding irrigation were; poor quality irrigation channels, non-availability of government tube wells for the small farmers, more expenditure on submersible motors, etc. The farmers of the study area were found to be unsatisfied with the existing irrigation facilities as the water table of the area is going down each year which results into the need for submersible pumps. All the farmers especially the medium and small can not afford the cost involved in the installation of submersible pumps. Therefore, government should install more submersible tube-wells so that the medium and small farmers can irrigate their crops on custom hiring basis. The problem of inadequate credit facility was not much serious as only 10.67 per cent of the farmers at the overall level reported to have faced this problem. The results further revealed that 46.33 per cent of the farmers had taken the credit from private money lenders at very high rate of interest. The percentage of small farmers who acquired the loan from private money lenders was highest (65.38 per cent), followed by medium (47.92 per cent) and large farmers (33.33 per cent). The farmers reported that the process of taking loan from the institutional sources was very complicated as they have to complete various types of formalities and paper work before taking the loan. As the majority of the farmers were not well educated, therefore they find it difficult to complete the procedure of taking the loan from institutional sources. Generally the small farmers prefer private sources of finance as they get cash instantly without any complicated paper work and formalities. Another problem in the maize growing areas was the dominance of private seed sector which has a visible presence, particularly in the case of sale of maize hybrid seeds. Nearly 98 per cent maize growers purchased seed from private seed dealers. The main reason behind the success of private seed companies is that they promote Table 4: Problems related to institutional and infrastructural facilities Small (78) Medium (96) Large (126) Overall (300) Poor connectivity to market (Kacha / Poor road) - - - - Inadequate and untimely supply of electricity 56 (71.79) 67 (69.79) 91 (72.22) 214 (71.33) Unsatisfactory irrigation facilities 47 (60.26) 51 (53.13) 59 (46.83) 157 (52.33) Inadequate and untimely availability of credit 9 (11.54) 10 (10.42) 13 (10.32) 32 (10.67) Sources of finance money lenders 51 (65.38) 46 (47.92) 42 (33.33) 139 (46.33) Purchase of seed from non-institutional sources 123 (97.62) 94 (97.92) 76 (97.44) 293 (97.67) 285

PRODUCTION & MARKETING PROBLEMS OF MAIZE their hybrids through local seed dealers by offering them high profit margins. Normally, the farmers blindly believe the suggestions of private dealers. Private seed companies take the advantage of this type of relationship between farmers and private dealers to exploit the farmers. In case, if a hybrid fails at the farmers fields, no company bears the responsibility of poor qualities of seed. The private dealers do not give any bill to the farmers for the purchase of inputs which is a most serious issue and is one of the examples of exploitation. The farmers cannot produce any documentary proof to complaint against the dealer or the private seed company. To overcome this problem there is a need of initiation of strict enforcement of quality control standards. Besides, the seed of private companies should be got tested and certified before selling it in the market. In addition, the retail price mentioned on the seed bag should be reliable, lowest and fixed. The research institutions should be provided more funds for research on maize hybrids to compete the private companies. Marketing problem: The various problems related to the marketing of maize produce are presented in Table 5. It was revealed that the marketing facilities could not keep pace with the modern day requirement of marketing of farm produce and maize is not an exception. The supply of farm inputs was not a major problem. The problem of poor marketing facilities has been reported by 67 per cent of the respondents. The problem of grains grading and availability of storage facilities was reported by entire sample farmers. They have the demand for sufficient storage facilities to store their produce in peak season and to sell it at higher prices in the lean season. Due to the lack of storage facilities the farmers have no option besides selling the produce immediately after harvesting at lower prices due to higher moisture content in the maize grains because they can not dry their produce in the market yard as there is not enough space to dry it. As a result they have to bear the loss of Rs 200 to 300 per quintal. The storage facilities may help to encourage maize cultivation in the state. It was interesting to note that none of the selected maize growers graded produce before marketing. The important reasons behind not grading the produce were the lack of grading facilities, little difference in prices of graded and non-graded produce and lack of awareness about grading standards. The farmers suggested that higher prices can be realized by selling the produce in distant consuming markets or by selling it directly to the processing units or by selling during lean season. This calls for revamping of the entire marketing system for orderly marketing of the produce in the regulated markets. The maize growers were of the opinion that the price of maize is not remunerative. There were wide fluctuations in its prices because it is totally under the control of private traders. It was also observed that no government agency in the market procures the maize produce from the farmers as in the case of wheat and paddy. To diversify the State agriculture and to encourage the maize cultivation, the marketing of maize has to be improved by providing consumption loans, cheaper storage facilities and favorable price policy for maize. Expectations of the farmers from the Government: The results pertaining to the expectations of farmers from the government are presented in Table 6. It was revealed that most acute problem was the procurement by the government agencies followed by the better trade and price policy, provision of processing facilities, fertilizer subsidy and dearth of proper storage facilities. This calls for overhauling of the entire maize marketing system in the state. This in turn would help in the allocation of more resources to maize crop. This will Table 5: Marketing problems of the maize growers in Punjab Small (78) Medium(96) Large(126) Overall(300) 1. Inadequate supply of inputs - - - - 2. Poor marketing facilities 50(64.10) 63(65.63) 88(69.84) 201(67.00) 3. Storage facility not available 78(100.00) 96(100.00) 126(100.00) 300(100.00) 4. Price of maize not remunerative 78(100.00) 96(100.00) 126(100.00) 300(100.00) 5. No Govt. agency available for procurement 78(100.00) 96(100.00) 126(100.00) 300(100.00) 6. Problem of grains grading 78(100.00) 96(100.00) 126(100.00) 300(100.00) Reasons for not grading the maize produce Not much price difference 38(48.72) 49(51.04) 62(49.21) 149(49.67) Lack of grading facilities 78(100.00) 96(100.00) 126(100.00) 300(100.00) Not aware of grading standards 32(41.03) 34(35.42) 46(36.51) 112(37.33) 286

RAJ KUMAR, S.S. CHAHAL, J.M. SINGH AND RAM SINGH Table 6: Expectations of the farmers from the Government (Per cent farmers) Small Medium Large Overall * Procurement by the government agencies 88.39 90.61 88.89 89.33 (I) Better trade and price policy 62.13 61.78 65.87 63.67 (II) Provision of processing facilities 6.37 5.16 7.15 6.34 (III) Fertilizer subsidy 3.74 0.93 2.38 2.34 (IV) Dearth of proper storage facilities 2.63 2.12 1.59 2.00 (V) * Mean scores go a long way to squeeze out some area from rice which provides a much needed impetus to much publicized diversification programme of government. Conclusions and suggestions: It may be concluded that the wide gap between the recommendations and their proper adoption at the farm level is essentially due to the poor dissemination of recommended technology to the farmers. Besides, low price, lack of proper marketing, availability of seed at much higher prices and technical know-how were reported as serious constraints in attaining the net returns from maize equivalent to its main competing crop paddy. In addition various biotic problems such as attack of insect-pests, weeds, problem of rats and termites results into loss in the average yield of maize. Since technological options for controlling these biotic constraints are already available, non-adoption at mass level as a campaign appears to be the main constraint in the adoption of available technologies which is a social problem. Other major problems were the inadequate availability of quality seed, lack of early maturing varieties (needed for drought management), weeds and unbalanced fertilizer use. Small farmers are resource poor and the costly improved private seed reduces their profit. Under such a scenario, the agricultural research institutions may initiate seed multiplication programmes to sell at reasonable prices, and hence pass on the benefits of research to farmers confronted with poverty and water scarcity. This will help in saving the farmers from the exploitation of private seed companies. The innovative technology disseminations method should also be implemented. In addition, developing innovative institutional arrangements to strengthen production-marketing-processing linkages to benefit producers and consumers is the need of the hour because market access also poses a major obstacle in realizing higher profit margins from maize crop. Authors affiliations: S.S. CHAHAL, J.M. SINGH AND RAM SINGH, Department of Economics and Sociology, Punjab Agricultural University, LUDHIANA (PUNJAB) INDIA LITERATURE CITED Akhtar, S.A., Mandal, S.S. and Singh, L.N. (2000). A comprehensive review of research and development of maize in Bihar. Bihar J. agric. Mktg., 8(4): 351-360. Datta, K.K., Khan, A.K., Singh, S.B., Tripathi, A.K. and Mandal, S. (2005). Prospects, problems and scope of rice production in northeast hilly states of India. Productivity, 46(1): 163-171. Kumar, R. and Singh, N.P. (2003). Maize production in India: golden grain in transition, Research Bulletin, Division of Agricultural Economics, IARI, New Delhi: pp.1-162. Puri, R. (2001). Apathy of Indian maize industry. Culled from www.commodityindia.com. * * * * * * * * 287