Rice Cultivation in Northeast India: Production Efficiency Under Different Farming Systems

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The primary focus of this book is on the production efficiency of rice cultivation in Northeast India, with special reference to the state of Nagaland, Northeast region is mostly based on an agrarian economy with more than 70 percent of the population engaged in the agriculture sector and rice is the main crop of the region covering around 61 per cent of gross cropped area. As the region is mostly covered with evergreen forest, large scales of areas are plotted for rice cultivation, with Terrace cultivation and shifting cultivation as the most common rice farming systems of the region.

The present work highlights on the production efficiency of rice cultivation in Nagaland, and an attempted to understand the existing rice production systems in three districts of Nagaland, namely, Wet Terrace Cultivation (WTC) under Phek, Wet Rice cultivation (WRC) under Dimapur, and Jhum cultivation (Shifting Cultivation) under Mokokchung districts. It also evaluated the cost of production and causes for cost variations under different rice farming systems and the efficiency of production and productivity and the factors influencing it.

Further, the study tried to analyze farmers perceptions of problems and prospects of rice cultivation and suggested policy measures to improve rice production in the selected area. The study concludes with certain suggestive measures for Improving efficiency by proper resource management within the existing technological framework so as to increase production which has become an alternative viable solution to achieve self-sufficiency and food security, since resource use efficiency differs from region to region due to the variations in land, fertilizer availability, Irrigation facilities, financial condition, and extent of adopting agricultural practices.

DR. B. IMNAWAPANG LONGKUMER (b.1985) currently working as an Assistant Professor in Department of Economics, Fazl Ali College, Mokokchung, Nagaland. Graduated from North-Eastern Hill University, Shillong, Meghalaya, M.A. Economics from Annamalai University, Tamil Nadu and Ph.D from Nagaland University, Lumami, Nagaland. He has published many papers in National and International Journals and has also presented papers in many National and International Conference. He is specialized in Environmental Economics and Macroeconomics. He is also a life time member of World Economics Association and Institute of Scholars (InSc).

Rice is the most important food crop in India and it plays a vital role to meet food security. India is one of the leading rice-producing countries in the world, with about 43.94 million hectares of cultivated area and production of 106.54 million tonnes in the year 2013-14. Despite having firm footage on rice cultivation, India is facing a formidable challenge to feed its burgeoning population, with projecting the rice requirement by the end of 2030 would be around 260 million tonnes (Reddy and Sen, 2004). Increasing productivity through technological innovation or efficient use of resources remains as the only option for increasing rice production. Therefore, increasing the production efficiency assumes greater significance in attaining potential output at the farm level. Especially for a developing agrarian economy like India, where resources are meager and opportunities for developing and adopting better technologies are dwindling, efficiency measurement is very important because it is a factor for productivity growth (Ali and Chaudhry, 1990). Improvement in efficiency by proper resource management within the existing technological framework to increase production has become an alternative viable solution to achieve self-sufficiency and food security. While, the resource use efficiency differs from region to region due to the variations in the land, fertilizer availability, irrigation facilities, financial condition, and extent of adopting agricultural practices.

Rice cultivation is a common agricultural practice for the rural population of Nagaland and is the basis for their sustenance. Despite the majority of labour force and area falling under rice cultivation in Nagaland, there is still a shortage of rice in the state. The study attempted to understand the existing rice production systems in three districts of Nagaland, namely, Wet Terrace Cultivation (WTC) under Phek, Wet Rice cultivation (WRC) under Dimapur, and Jhum cultivation under Mokokchung districts. It also evaluated the cost of production and causes for cost variations under different rice farming systems and the efficiency of production and productivity and the factors influencing it. Further, it tried to analyze farmer's perceptions of problems and prospects of rice cultivation and suggested policy measures to improve rice production in the selected area.

The study found that Wet Rice Cultivation (WRC) is the most productive among all the three farming systems, while Jhum cultivation was found to be the least productive. Wet rice cultivation was found to incur the lowest cost per acre, while, wet terrace cultivation incurs the highest. Among the farm size groups, small farmers under wet terrace cultivation incur the highest cost of production, while large farmers under wet rice cultivation incur the lowest. Similarly, in the case of returns, wet rice cultivation gets the highest revenue and profit, followed by wet terrace, while jhum cultivation gets the lowest yield. Though the farmers under jhum cultivation incur losses, they receive additional income through practicing mixed cropping which compensates the losses. Small farmers under wet rice cultivation earn the highest profit among all the farms' size groups. The main reason for high productivity under wet rice cultivation is due to the use of all the required inputs when compared to jhum cultivation where the uses of inputs are very less.

The study found that, though the productivity increased in all the farming systems, still the yield per acre is very much lower than the national average and the majority of farmers are growing rice for self-consumption. The regression analysis reveals that farm size plays the most vital role in the production of rice in all the rice farming systems. The result from Cobb- Douglas production reveals that both capital and labour play a very important role in the production of rice in all the three farming systems, though the labour is more prominent. Study concludes that to enhance productivity substantially, there is a need for sound management practices for soil fertility and pest control for all three farming systems, the introduction of high yielding rice varieties, appropriate training, strong institutional support, like credit, extension services, and marketing facilities, emphasize on post-harvest management, promotion of selective mechanization, comprehensive irrigation and drainage systems and Agricultural Research and Development programs, etc.