Measuring the Production Cost and Returns of HYV Boro Rice Farmers

Measuring the Production Cost and Returns of HYV Boro Rice Farmers2015

Term Paper on:Measuring the Cost of Production and Returns of HYV Boro Rice FarmersA study in Comilla District

Prepared For

Dr. Shaikh Moksadur Rahman

Associate ProfessorDepartment of Management StudiesComilla University

Comilla University

Term Paper on:Measuring the Cost of Production and Returns of HYV Boro Rice Farmers A study in Comilla District

Prepared For:

Dr. Shaikh Moksadur RahmanAssociate ProfessorDepartment of Management StudiesComilla University

Prepared By:

SL NoName of The StudentsRoll No

01.Selim Mahmud1008009

02.Forhad Miah1008020

03. Md. Robiul Hasan 1008032

04.Md. Easir Arafat1008042

05.Mohammed Rafiqul Islam1008053

Course Title: Cost AccountingDate of Submission: 15th February, 2015

Executive Summary

Being an agricultural country Bangladesh is one of the smallest countries of the world. As the population of the country is about 16 crores, so food security is a burning question for her. Agriculture has a great contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country. When, industrialization starts happening the activities of the population at arts diversification towards different sectors. As a result, the contribution of the agriculture sector is slowly reducing and now reached 19% share of GDP. Still agriculture plays vital role and is known as the most important sector of the economy. Its an empirical survey that has been conducted to examine the differences in input use, costs and returns of the HYV Boro rice farmers. We took five farmers as a sample from Salmanpur village and Cangini village under Sadar Dakshin of Comilla district. The major findings of our survey are that the ownership of the land is a major factor influencing the profitability of a farmer. The technical knowhow of the farmer regarding the use of fertilizer & pesticides also affect the production of paddy and profit as well. Though our survey shows that positive returns are occurred as a profit but this amount of profit is very little to their efforts. Therefore, this survey reveals that credit could be judged as a vital player to increase higher yield through utilization of necessary production inputs.We also can say that, to solve the remaining difficulties on the path of the development of agriculture we and govt. along together should take necessary steps to make it too much established sector of our economy.

Scope of the Study: Agriculture is a prominent and main sector of our economy. Our country greatly depends on this sector for its verities supply within the whole year. Boro rice is an important part to ensure the fulfillment of food demand of our country. Our study is based on measuring the production cost and returns of HYV boro rice farmers. Through preparing this term-paper, we have an experience to visit in the field which had not before. Its our pleasure to get opportunity to make such a fantastic term-paper. This term paper has been prepared through extensive discussion with farmers. While preparing this term-paper, we had a great opportunity to have an in depth knowledge on the types of rice, cultivation method, using amount of fertilizers, irrigation method and mainly knowing about the input and output of the HYV boro rice farmers.

Objectives of the study:

Specific Objective: To measure the cost of production and returns of HYV Boro Rice farmers. Other Objectives: To know about the condition of total agricultural sector of our country especially about the Comilla District. To study the interrelationship between input and output of Boro rice production To know the cost of production during cultivation, harvesting and selling period. To investigate the utilization of credit according to loan size.

Methodology of the study

This survey has been conducted on the basis of Primary & secondary data. To some extent primary data were used.

Primary data: Primary data were collected by conducting and in-depth personal interview. Observation technique also has been used in case of need. However the data used in this study has been further analyzed and processed for the purpose of the study.

Secondary data: Secondary data were used and these were collected from relevant journals, magazines, newspapers etc. and also publication of the sector of Bangladesh along with others. We collect information based on the research paper of different scholar.

Limitations of the Study

We have worked to prepare the term-paper more accurately; we think that our term-paper carries some limitations. Therefore, the following problems are found that may be termed as the limitations/shortcomings of this study. The main limitations encountered in producing this term-paper are as follows: As our respondents are farmer they have lacking in knowledge. They cant answer the question in a proper way. In the time of field survey, we noticed that some farmers are not willing enough to provide their personal information as like contact no. and the accurate information regarding our study on account of their mistrust and fear. Up to date information is not available. Shortage of time was another limitation to prepare this paper.

Overview of Agriculture of Bangladesh at a Glance:

Total family2,86,95,763

Total farm holding1,51,83,183

Total area14.86 million hectare

Forest2.599 million hectare

Cultivable land8.52 million hectare

Cultivable waste0.268 million hectare

Current fellow0.469 million hectare

Cropping intensity191%

Single cropped area2.236 million hectare

Double cropped area4.107 million hectare

Triple cropped area1.485 million hectare

Net cropped area7.837 million hectare

Total cropped area14.943 million hectare

Contribution of agriculture sector to GDP19.29%

Contribution of crop sector to GDP13.44%

Manpower in agriculture(% of Total manpower)47.5%

Total food crop production37.266 million metric ton

Expected Rice SupplyRice supply in 2015 is expected to be in the range of 31.2 to 35.2 million tons, and it is likely to grow to 39 million tons by 2030.

Projected Rice DemandThe total direct demand for rice in 2030 is projected to be in the range of 31.3 to 42.0 million tons, up from 26.8 to 29.2 million tons in 2015.

Table-1: Agriculture of Bangladesh at a GlanceAgriculture of Bangladesh Agriculture is the backbone of the economy of Bangladesh. Even in the era of industrialization, the livelihood of Bangladesh is dependent on agriculture. However, compared to international agriculture, Bangladesh is underdeveloped in many sectors. Though we are agrarian country and rice is our staple food, the production of rice is still much lower than other countries like Vietnam, USA, China, Japan etc. Considering international perspectives, the agricultural scientists of Bangladesh is now thinking as competitive manners. Once upon a time 75 per cent of jute was produced in Bangladesh. But due to increasing demand of rice, farmers reduced jute production compared to rice. However, jute is still playing important role in national economy. Every year Bangladesh earns a remarkable amount of foreign currency by exporting jute and jute-based products. Crops, poultry, fisheries, livestock, forestry etc. are the great important part of our agriculture. Those are discussed below in brief-Crops of Bangladesh: The crops of our country are generally categorized into two types. These are stated into the following figure-

Food CropsCash Crops

Rice Wheat Pulses Potato Sweet potato Oilseeds Spices Fruits Jute Tea Tobacco Cotton Sugar cane Betel nut Silk Rubber

Table-2: Crops of Bangladesh.

Recent Achievement in Agriculture Production (million Metric Tons): Table-3: Recent Achievement in Agriculture Production

Poultry Industry of Bangladesh: Poultry is considered as an important source of animal protein all over the world. In Bangladesh, poultry contributes a major share of animal protein simply because of the limitations and religious taboos in case of pork and beef. Bangladesh is a country the people of which consume the lowest percentage of protein than the minimum requirements because of inadequate supply of protein-generating food products. Poultry meat and egg can effectively fulfill the shortage of protein requirement, since it can be produced at the least cost, lowest time and efforts than the other protein producing animals.Commercial poultry industry is growing rapidly in Bangladesh. Estimate shows that poultry population is increasing at the rate of 6.5% per year in the country. There are over 116.5 million chickens and 13.47 million ducks in Bangladesh. This poultry sector is growing may be because the fish population is declining and people are switching to poultry as a source of animal protein. According to a 2006 census completed by the Department of Livestock Services (DLS) and the Poultry Sector Development Project (PSDP), there are approximately 38000 commercial poultry farms housing 124,10,000 layers and 107,84,5000 broilers in Bangladesh (Jarjour, 2006). These poultry farms are producing approximately 10474 tons (I.e., 1063 million tons year) of excreta every day in the country. In Bangladesh we naturally see four categories of poultry production procedure exist in villages, towns or cities. These are - Traditional rural backyard scavenging Semi-scavenging, Commercial farming system Contract/ integrated farming system.Livestock Sector in Bangladesh: In agricultural economy, production management, employment of huge people, poverty reduction and animal protein supply, livestock sector plays very crucial role. But expected development of this sector is not occurred because government did not give appropriate priority to this sector. Now the production of this sector among the total production of the country is only 3%. Contribution of this sector in the total production of the country decreasing day after day which is not expected because the foods produced by this sector has a great demand in this country and this industry has a lot of prospect. Cattle population in Bangladesh is about 24.13 million. In the rural area, cattle are kept mainly for draught purpose. Only a limited number of farmers have cow for milk production. Maximum cattle are no descriptive type, which do not belong to any specific breed and termed as indigenous cattle. These animals are kept mainly in the stall with limited grazing on the roadside; embankment slope, fallow land and paddy straw are their staple food. Husbandry practices and health care of these animals are poor. The average milk production of local cows is very low and it varies between 300 to 400 liters per lactation period of 180 to 240 days. Such low productivity of indigenous cows is an important constraint for future development of the livestock sector. High productive exotic breeds and their crosses normally do not have adequate resistance against the prevalent diseases Bangladesh suffers from an acute shortage of livestock products like milk, meat and eggs. The domestic demand for milk has been rising faster than the domestic production of milk. Hence Bangladesh Government has given the priority on the development of dairying at farmers level to increase the supply of milk from small dairy farms.

Fisheries and Aquaculture in Bangladesh: Fish is the second most valuable agricultural crop in Bangladesh and its production contributes to the livelihoods and employment of millions of people. The culture and consumption of fish therefore has important implications for national income and food security. Bangladeshi people are popularly referred to as Mache Bhate Bangali or fish and rice makes a Bengali. The fisheries sector in Bangladesh is broadly divided into four sub-sectors- inland capture, inland culture, mari-culture (artisanal fisheries) and marine industrial fisheries. Bangladesh is one of the worlds leading inland fisheries producers and has a huge water resource all over the country in the form of small ponds, ditches, lakes, canals, small and large rivers, and estuaries covering about 4.34 million hectares. Freshwater aquaculture involves pond aquaculture especially the polyculture of native. and exotic species. The country also has a coastal area of 2.30 million ha and a coastline of 714 km along the Bay of Bengal, which supports a large artisanal and coastal fisheries. Bangladesh is considered one of the most suitable countries in the world for farming of freshwater prawn. Bangladesh has some 130 deep-sea fishing trawlers, 22000 mechanized fishing boats, and 25000 non mechanized fishing boats. Currently there are 133 fish processing plants in Bangladesh which are mostly located in port cities(Khulna and Chittagong) of which 74 processing plants are EU approved. Though the country is endowed with enormous fishery resources which are vital to the livelihood of millions of people and national food and nutrition security, the sector is facing major constraints including climate change, poor fisheries infrastructure, resource mismanagement, water and environmental population, natural disasters such as recurrent flood and cyclones, and lack of knowledge among farmers.

Forestry in Bangladesh: Wood is the main fuel for cooking and other domestic requirements. It is not surprising that population pressure has had an adverse effect on the indigenous forests. By 1980 only about 16 percent of the land was forested, and forests had all but disappeared from the densely populated and intensively cultivated deltaic plain. Aid organizations in the mid-1980s began looking into the possibility of stimulating small-scale forestry to restore a resource for which there was no affordable substitute.The largest areas of forest are in the Chittagong Hills and the Sundarbans. The evergreen and deciduous forests of the Chittagong Hills cover more than 4,600 square kilometres (1,800sqmi) and are the source of teak for heavy construction and boat building, as well as other forest products. Domesticated elephants are still used to haul logs. The Sundarbans, a tidal mangrove forest covering nearly 6,000 square kilometres (2,300sqmi) along the Bay of Bengal, is the source of timber used for a variety of purposes, including pulp for the domestic paper industry, poles for electric power distribution, and leaves for thatching for dwellings. The total forest area of Bangladesh are given below-Table-4: Forest Area in Bangladesh.

Agricultural Based Research Centers/Institutes in Bangladesh: There are various research institutes and centers in Bangladesh which are based on agriculture. These are stated in the following figure: NameLocationEstablished Year

Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI)Joydebpur, Gazipur1976

Bangladesh Rice Research Institute(BRRI)Joydebpur, Gazipur1970

Bangladesh Forest Research Institute (BFRI)Sholashahar, Chittagong1955

Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture (BINA)Mymensingh1961

Bagladesh Jute Research Institute (BJRI)Manik Mia Avenue, Dhaka1974

Bangladesh Tea Research Institute (BTRI)Sylhet1973

Table-5: Agricultural Based Research Centers/Institutes in Bangladesh

Characteristics of Agriculture in Bangladesh

A. Primitive type of cultivation: the cultivators are still using almost all the age-old appliances like ploughs, yokes, harrows, weak bulls etc for cultivation of their land which were used during the ancient time. The development countries brought revolutionary changes in agriculture by using modern and scientific equipment and others inputs like tractors, pesticides, fertilizer etc.

B. Diminishing fertility of the soil: like all other elements, the soil has also a definite limit of productivity capacity. It is therefore necessary to raise the fertility of the land for increasing productive capacity by applying manures suitable for environment and this can be done by mixing soil. Since the Bangladeshi cultivators are inexperienced is the regard.

C. Small holdings of land: Due to increased population, joint families are gradually disappearing and this is responsible for making the large holdings smaller. Cultivation in such smallholdings is not possible even by wooden plough.

D. Landless cultivators: The rural poor people are day by day becoming landless due to economic pressure .These landless people for their subsistence cultivate lands of the village mahajans on crop sharing basis .For want of ownership of land, they do not feel interested to properly invest; even feel unwilling to render their physical labor on this land. For this reason, good harvest is not possible.

E. Decreasing per capital cultivable land: Cultivable land is being gradually reduced for distribution limited land among the increasing population of the country. It is learnt from the meeting of the parliamentary committee of the Ministry of Agriculture held in September, 2003.

F. Cultivation for livelihood: Most of the farmers of Bangladesh produce crops for livelihood only; they had little interest for crops production on commercial basis. The commercial attitude for production of crops has not yet been popular.

G. Dependence on nature: Agriculture in Bangladesh depends on nature. Agricultural crops production is seriously hampered every year by the vagaries of nature. There is a common word that agriculture in Bangladesh is a gamble in the monsoons. As a result crop production varies considerably.

H. Fallow land: Vast land of the eastern region especially in the districts of Mymensingh , Netrokona, Kishorganj, Sylhet, Sunamganj etc. is still lying fallow and as such we are getting no yield from those lands.

I. Uneven land: Natural composition of the land of eastern 3 zone like Mymensingh, sylhet, Chitttagong and Dhaka is slightly uneven and for this reason most of this land cannot be brought under irrigation facilities. The uneven land also cannot hold water therefore, per acre yield of such lands is less than that of plain ones.

J. Lack of marketing of agricultural produce: Agricultural product needs extension marketing programs. It has not yet been possible to take extensive measures for making agriculture an industry in villages.

Role of Agriculture in the Economy of Bangladesh

Bangladesh is a developing country. Agriculture plays an important role in the economic development of the country. External debt alone cannot ensure full development and therefore, we have to depend more on our own local resources. Extensive development of agriculture can easily provide necessary fund for the national upliftment. Various roles of agriculture in the economy of Bangladesh are discussed below.

i. Raw materials: Agriculture also supplies raw materials for industry. The country needs be agriculturally developed before it is to be developed industrially.

ii. Food: Necessary food for our increasing population comes from agriculture. If production is not widely increased, famine may appear and if famine is met by importing food from outside the country, development activities of the nation may jeopardize.

iii. Government Income: Government income is intimately connected with the development of agriculture. Government treasury becomes rich with the increased production of the country and tax including the arrear one can also be easily collected from the people.

iv. Increasing Export & Import: The volume of export and import trade increases with the increase of production. Transport and communication facilities also increased.

v. Self-Employment: About 48.40 percent people of our total population have been able to employ themselves in agriculture. About 80 percent of the people residing in the rural areas are employed in the sector.

vi. Animal Foods: Bi-products of agriculture are used as food for the cattle and these are treated as contributing factors for raising cattle resources.

Agriculture in Comilla District: There are 16 upozillas in the Comilla district. These are the- Adarsha Sadar, Barura, Brahmanpara, Burichang, Chandina, Chauddagram, Comilla Sadar Dakshin, Daudkandi, Debidwar, Homna, Laksam, Monohorganj, Meghna, Muradnagar, Nangalkot and Titas. The condition of agriculture of comilla district is mostly stable and prominent compare to the other districts of Bangladesh. Every types of crops and all other agricultural factors are stayed here. The Comilla Model, which began in 1959, has been the most successful and influential example of cooperative agricultural development in Bangladesh. Projects in Comilla District provided more modern technologies to farmers: low-lift water pumps; low-cost hand-dug six-inch tube wells; pilot research on adapting thirty- five-horsepower tractors for rice cultivation; new crop and animal varieties; testing and introduction of such inputs as chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and high-yield varieties of seeds; and new storage and processing technology. These innovations attracted resources to local rural institutions, against the prevailing urban orientation of the leadership elite. They provided some counterweight to the trend of ambitious village people seeking to leave the countryside in favor of the cities or foreign countries.Crops Production in Comilla District: We already stated there are various types of crops in our country and most of them are produced in the comilla district. The sandy soil of Comilla is very helpful to ensure more production. The production of several in Comilla district is given below-Crops Production in Metric Ton (2009-2010)Production in Metric Ton (2010-2011)

Rice9,56,45412,62,974

Wheat5,4615,970

Jute11,77210,661

Sugar Cane 2,9653,301

Potato30,941919,5033

Table-6: Crops Production in Comilla District.

Irrigation Management of Comilla District: We know that irrigation is the part and parcel of the agriculture. By collecting and analyzing data we can say that the irrigation management of Comilla district is so well and organized. A short scenario of irrigation management of Comilla district in 2010-2011 is given below- Used tools Usages of tools(in acre)

Power Pump165339

Tube Well24301

Doon2215

Swing Basket2212

Canal226

Others48234

Total199749

Table-7: Irrigation management in Comilla District.

Usage and Distribution of Chemical Fertilizer in Comilla District:Fertilizer is the main source of power of the plants. For this reason fertilizer play a vital role to increase production day day. The usage and distribution of fertilizer in 2010-2011 in Comilla district are given below-Chemical FertilizerDistribution(in metric ton)Usage(In metric ton)

UREA8529079797

TSP2850528201

MP604122382

DAP187742502

Others133347846

Table-8: Usage and Distribution of Chemical Fertilizer in Comilla District.

High Yielding Variety (HYV) The expansion of modern agricultural farming practices like use of High Yielding Variety (HYV) together with intensified cultivation is needed to ensure food for all, which led to an increasing demand for fertilizers. It is, therefore, necessary to ensure timely supply of both organic and chemical fertilizers to meet the nutritional demand of these varieties. The use of chemical fertilizer is on the increase with the increasing demand for food production in the country. The use of urea fertilizer alone was the highest.

Brief Discussion on Boro Rice

The major food crop of Bangladesh is Boro. The paddy which is planted in mid November to February and reaped in the month of April to June, is called Boro. There are three types of Boro namely-Local Boro, High Yielding Variety (HYV) Boro and Hybrid Boro Presently Boro tops the list of paddy production.The major crops currently harvested are the irrigated Boro rice . Boro is the major season for rice, accounting for about 50 % of total annual production. This years Boro paddy harvest is estimated at a record level of about 19 million tonnes, some 1.6 % above last years bumper output. Generally adequate irrigation supplies coupled with distribution of subsidized fertilizer, quality seeds, and electricity power and diesel for irrigation, were responsible for the increase. Local Boro : From time immemorial this type of paddy has been cultivating in our country and is said to be local variety Boro. Planting time of this variety is mid November to December and harvesting time is April to May. It gives relatively lower yield rate.

HYV Boro: The name HYV has been originated for its high yielding capacity. In the decade of 1960, HYV was introduced and through the pass of time this HYV has been extended very rapidly to meet the demand of the cereals in the market. Time of transplantation of HYV is mid December to February and reaping time is May to June.

Hybrid Boro : This variety has brought revolutionary change in respect of yield rate. The sowing and harvesting time of Hybrid Boro is the same as that of HYV. The seeds are very much environment sensitive and farmers cannot preserve the seeds domestically. These are preserved in seeds producing institutions. And farmers have to procure seeds from these institutions.

Harvesting Period: Generally Boro harvest period is Mid-April to Mid-June.

Selling Period: Generally Boro selling period is Mid-June to October.

Introduction to some HYV Boro Rice: Name: BR -01(chandina)DescriptionPicture

Discovered from(crossing):IR-262-43-03 &TKM-06 Year of discovering:1970 Monsoon: Boro & Aush Harvesting period(reaping period):150 days Production/hectares: 5.5 tones Main/special use: Rice

Name:BR-28DescriptionPicture

Discovered from(crossing):BR-06& Purbachin Year of discovering:1994 Monsoon:Boro Harvesting period(reaping period):140 days Production/hectre:06 tones Main/special use:Rice

Name:BR-03(Biplob)DescriptionPicture

Discovered from(crossing):IR 506-133-01 & Latishail Year of discovering:1973 Monsoon: Boro & Aman Harvesting period(reaping period):170 days Production/hectares: 6.5tones Main/special use: world famous for rice

Name: BR-50(Banglamoti)DescriptionPicture

Discovered from(crossing): BR-30 & IR-67684 Year of discovering:2008 Monsoon: Boro Harvesting period(reaping period):155 days Production/hectre: 06 tones Main/special use: perfumed rice

Name: BR hybrid -01DescriptionPicture

Discovered from(crossing): Hybrid IR-696908H Year of discovering:2001 Monsoon:Boro Harvesting period(reaping period):155 days Production/hectre:8.5 tones Main/special use:Rice

Name: BR -16(Shahibalam)DescriptionPicture

Discovered from(crossing):IR1416-131-5, IR-1364-37-03-01 & IR-1514A-E666 Year of discovering:1983 Monsoon:Boro & Aush Harvesting period(reaping period):165 days Production/hectre: 06 tones Main/special use: High quality Muri, Rice.

Analysis of Data: Measuring the Cost of production of HYV Boro Rice in Comilla district 1. Measuring cost of production of HYV Boro rice on the basis of types of land ownership, types of Boro rice, format of cultivation and expenses(Tk) that are given by Table:

RespondentsTypes of Boro Rice(code)Amount of land(decimals)Types of ownershipFormat of cultivation(machine)Other expenses(tk)Total amount(tk)

Farmer -1BR-28BR-360710OwnOwn 200300------200300

Farmer -2BR-2844own18002002,000

Farmer -3BR-2890own26002002,800

Farmer -4BR-28BR-366020Own Adoration1800600------1,800600

Farmer -5BR-28160Own 4800---4800

(Source: Field Survey, 2015)

2. According to Seeds, Preparing stage of seeds, withdrawal of plants, selling and buying of plants, number of labor and expenses that are given by table:

RespondentsTypes of stages of seedsSeedsCosts (Tk)Labor needs to prepare stages of seeds costs(Tk)Withdrawal of plants on the basis of number of labor costs(tk)Total amount(tk)

Farmer -1Hybrid-35603503501,260

Farmer -2Hybrid-36009006002,100

Farmer -3Hybrid-31,8008008003,400

Farmer -4Hybrid-31,3201,400----2,720

Farmer -5Hybrid-35,4001,0501,4007,850

(Source: Field Survey, 2015)

3. According to the costs of usage amount of Fertilizer (kg) and price:RespondentsUriaCosts (tk)TSP costs(tk)Potash costs(tk)Cow dungFertilizer costs(tk)Total amount(tk)

Farmer -13402452453401,170

Farmer -28802201504001,650

Farmer -35007007201,0002,920

Farmer -41,0002802881,0002,568

Farmer -51,8002,8001,296----5,896

(Source: Field Survey, 2015)

4. According to costs of usage amount of Insecticide and it costs:RespondentsBasudinCosts (tk)Furdancosts(tk)Brifercosts(tk)Sunthiyoncosts(tk)Total amount(tk)

Farmer -1170180-----------350

Farmer -2320----------------320

Farmer -3340----------------340

Farmer -4340----------------340

Farmer -5-----780-----------780

(Source: Field Survey, 2015)

5. According to usage of irrigation and its costs (taka):RespondentsBy Machine (Electric) tk.Other expenses (tk)Total amount(tk)

Farmer -1550----550

Farmer -21,600----1,600

Farmer -33,000----3,000

Farmer -42,400----2,400

Farmer -55,600----5,600

(Source: Field Survey, 2015)

6. According to harvest of plants, Clean of weeds and cutting paddy & other expense (tk):RespondentsHarvest of plants (tk)Clean of weeds (tk)Cutting paddy(tk)Other expenses (tk)Total amount(tk)

Farmer -17001,4001,4007004,200

Farmer -21,5001,2009009004,500

Farmer -33,5001,4004,5501,40010,850

Farmer -43,8501,7504,2002,10011,900

Farmer -56,6503,5008,0501,75019,950

(Source: Field Survey, 2015)

7. According to producing paddy and subsistence amount (mon) and price (tk)RespondentsPaddy Price (tk)Subsistence (khor) tk.Total amount (tk)

Farmer -15,6251,4007,025

Farmer -214,0003,20017,200

Farmer -333,0006,40039,400

Farmer -433,7505,60039,350

Farmer -554,00011,20065,200

(Source: Field Survey, 2015)

Returns at a glance of our respondents in a boro monsoon: RespondentsTotal sells or gross profit

Primary expanses (table -1)Seeds & seedlings expanses (table-2)Cost of fertilizers (table-3)Cost of insecticide(table-4)Cost of irrigation(table-5)Cost of Procrastination(table-6)Net profit {Total sells (1+2+3+4+5+6)}

Farmer -17,0255001,2601,1703505504,200-1,005

Farmer -217,2002,0002,1001,6503201,6004,500 5,030

Farmer -339,4002,8003,4002,9203403,00010,85016,090

Farmer -439,3502,4002,7202,5683402,40011,90017,022

Farmer -565,2004,8007,8505,8967805,60019,95020,324

(Source: Field Survey, 2015)

Discussion on the Basis of Field Survey: By conducting field survey, we can see that most of the farmers in Comilla area want to plant the BR-28, BR-29, BR-36 etc. and most of them stated that cultivation of boro rice is not profitable as they desire. There is a little bit profit. For this reason most of the farmers are diverted to other occupation for their livelihood. There is another vulnerable issue that the interest rate of agricultural loan is between 25% to 40% which is alarming for the poor farmers. Besides there are a lots of problem in the agriculture which are stated below-

Dependent on nature: Raining is not proportionate in all seasons. Besides, our irrigations systems are also primitive. So we have to depend on nature for cultivation. It is one of the main obstacles in agriculture. Natural calamities: Much of Bangladesh lies in disaster-prone, floodplain areas. Annual flooding and occasional flash flooding, together with other periodic natural disasters, often cause crop damage and food shortage for vulnerable populations. Consecutive floods in August-September and Cyclone sider in November 2007 caused severe losses to crops, lives, infrastructure and properties. High cost of agricultural production: The prices of fertilizers and fuel have risen continuously and steeply in recent years, but he prices of farm products have not kept pace. This deteriorating input to output ration for all crops decreases farmer profitability. Insufficient agricultural technology: Our agriculture cant be improved because of insufficient agricultural technology. Addressing problems of low soil fertility: To increase crop production in response to increasing population, forests are constantly being cleared to make room for new, arable land. This large scale removal of forests is resulting in the reduction of soil fertility. On the other hand, cultivable lands lose their fertility after a certain number of cultivation cycles. These lands require treatment. Lack of knowledge on agriculture: In order to apply scientific method of cultivation, we have increase knowledge of agriculture. Most of the farmers in our country are illiterate. They dont know how to apply scientific method of cultivations. As a result our production decreases. Poor farmers: Most of the farmers in our country are landless. They use others land for cultivation. As they have no capital, they cant buy seeds , fertilizer and preservative in proper time. So they cant use land properly. Insufficient input: Improved seeds, fertilizer, preservative and other inputs of agriculture are not available. Most of the time greedy businessmen hoard the essential inputs of agriculture. As a result the farmers face scarcity of inputs. Improper marketing: Because of undeveloped transportation, farmer cant sell their product in proper time. As a result, they deprive form real price. Increasing population: The growth rate of Bangladesh is 1.58%. Because of increasing population we have to build more school, college, road, university, building etc. as a result cultivable land decreases. Want of agricultural co-operative society: Agricultural co-operative society helps farmer to increase production. But in our country we dont have genuine co-operative society. As a result, our agricultural production decreases. Using unproductive seeds: Most of the farmers in our country use unproductive seeds. Lack of agricultural knowledge, they cant use productive seeds. As a result, our agricultural production decreases. Lack of diversity: Land diversity is very much needed to maintain the fertility of soil. A large percentage of cultivatable land is allocated to rice despite the country having the environment to produce a number of crops, trees and horticultural species.

Lack of proper steps: To achieve any goal, we have to take proper steps: In order to increase agricultural production we need not only standard planning but also proper step. In our country policy maker take may planning, but want of proper steps cant be effective. Processing: Every year 10-20 percent of total production are rotten, want of processing. Sometimes production is greater than demand. On this time market price decrease. Establishment of industry: Sometimes in our country government and private sectors collect cultivable land to establish industry. And thus our agricultural land decrease. Undeveloped transportation and communication: The transportation facilities form village to city is not so good. As a result most of the time crops are rotten and farmers deprived of their profit.

Recommendation

From the conduction of the research in two villages, several recommendations can be prescribed for the benefit of the Bangladeshi farmers. These are: Constant monitoring of supply, storage, price and quality of seed and fertilizers at various levels should be ensured. Stress should be given by the government on procurement and distribution of fertilizers both at the private and the public sectors. Steps to be taken to maintain a fertilizer buffer stock at the regional, district and Upazilla level. Government should facilitate for availability of quality fertilizers and seeds at end users (farmers) level. Open market sell of seeds and fertilizer as demanded by farmers could be extended. The loan facilities should be increased. Irrigation cost must be minimized. The government will pioneer research and development of appropriate agricultural machinery and equipment. The government will encourage production and manufacturing of agriculture machinery locally. Periodical training program will be conducted for the better knowledge about the modern agricultural tools. Ensuring agricultural subsidy to reduce the cost. Finally, both private and public sectors should be encouraged in improving agricultural products through values addition activities.

Conclusion

Being an agricultural country Bangladesh is one of the smallest countries of the world. As the population of the country is about 16 crore, so food security is a burning question for her. The most of her inhabitants directly or indirectly are involved in agricultural activities for their livelihood. Against the backdrops of global recession, commodity price hikes and food shortages, measures have been taken to meet the increasing food demand by increasing domestic production. Special emphasis has been given to build up a modern agricultural system, introduction of new technologies and expansion of opportunities for agricultural research. Furthermore, measures for increasing subsidy on inputs to agriculture, expanding irrigation and making agricultural inputs more available, preserving the harvest and ensuring fair price of corps and agro-productivity

Bibliography:

Mohammad Shamsul Kabir Khan And Dr. Daulatunnahar Khanam, Bangladesh Studies, 2nd Edition, Chaity Chayon Prokashoni. Maziruddin. 1989. Markets and Marketing Policies in Acceleariting Agricultural Growth. In Bangladesh Agriculture Sector Review. Compendium 4, Markets and Prices. Dhaka: Ministry of Agriculture, Government of Bangladesh. M Ashadduzzaman, march 2009. Getting Agricultural Moving Once Again: Strategic Options for post HYV Agriculture in Bangladesh. Bangladesh Economic Review 2010 (Finance Division, Ministry of Finance). Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI). Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI). Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics(BBS) District Statistics 2011, Comilla, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics(BBS). Field Survey, 2015.

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