Cost and return analysis of wheat production in the Sanwer Block of Indore district Madhya Pradesh

Introduction

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is cereal crops and serves as a staple food for a large proportion of the world's population (Government of India, 2024) [4] . In India, wheat a vital role in ensuring food security and contributes significantly to agricultural income and employment (Government of India, 2024) [4] . MP is one of the leading wheat-producing states, where favorable agro-climatic conditions support high productivity (Government of India, 2024) [4] . The profitability of wheat cultivation depends on the efficient use of production inputs, cost management, and adoption of improved cultivation practices (CACP, 2024) [3] . Therefore, an economic analysis of the cost of cultivation and profitability is essential for identifying opportunities to enhance farm income and resource-use efficiency. The study was undertaken to analyze the cost of cultivation and profitability of wheat in Sanwer Block of Indore district, Madhya Pradesh.

Research methodology

The study was recoded to Saber block of Indore district of Madhya Pradesh. The Saber Block was selected purposively because this block has remarkable place in the cultivation of wheat crop in the Indore district of Malwa plateauadditionally to make it easier for the researcher to obtain more precise data. To gather sample farms for the study, multistage random sampling was employed. Depalpur, Indore, Mhow, and Sanwer are the four blocks that make up the Indore district. Sanwer blocks were purposefully chosen during the initial sample step. In the second sampling stage, a list of Sanwer block's wheat-growing villages was created. Five of these villages were then chosen at random, and the wheat-growing farmers from each of those villages were categorized into five main groups based on the amount of land they owned: marginal (less than 1 ha), small (1-2 ha), semi-medium (2-4 ha), medium (4-10 ha) and large (10 ha or above). Next, a sample of seventy-five farmers was chosen.

Cost concepts

The overall cost of producing wheat was estimated using the cost and returns ideas. The estimating process in detail is shown below. (Verma et al, 2016 and Kumar et, 2023) [5,9] Cost A1 = All actual expenses incurred in the crop production (Value)

Income measure

The cost ideas are used to calculate various income measurements. These metrics are displayed below and were utilized in the benefit analysis of this study.

Result and discussion

Table 1 shows the study's findings regarding the cost of growing wheat in the Sanwer block. According to the table, the average total cost of growing wheat was determined to be ₹57004.23/ha. Large farms had the highest cultivation costs (₹60166.53), followed by medium farms (₹58383.88/ha), semi-medium farms (₹56939.23/ha), tiny farms (₹55231.95/ha), and (₹54299.57/ha). It showed that the expense of C3 rose as farm size grew. (Kumar and others, 2025) [6] . Cost A1 accounts for ₹32931.92/ha, or 57.77% of the total cost of C3. The large farm had the highest cost A1 (₹36158.29/ha), followed by medium (₹34405.54/ha), semimedium (₹32892.44/ha), tiny (₹31152.30/ha), and marginal (₹30051.04/ha). It suggested that Cost A1 rises as farms get bigger because large farmers spend more on variable inputs. Large farms had the largest cost share of ₹5766.55/ha (10.12 percent of cost C3) among the cost A1 component, followed by medium farms (₹5961.43), semi-medium farms (₹5854.77/ha), small farms (₹5467.53/ha), and marginal farms (₹5288.90/ha). It was claimed that because large and medium-sized farms require high-quality seed, the cost of seeds rises as farms get bigger. Small (₹4358.40/ha), semimedium (₹4780.66 ha), and marginal agriculture (₹4201.26/ha). The cost of hired labor was found to be ₹3710.78/ha (6.51%), with the large farm having the highest price (₹4031.24/ha) and the marginal farm having the lowest (₹3404.20/ha). The overall farm-level irrigation charges were ₹4568.54/ha (8.01%), with marginal, small, semi-medium, medium, and large farm sizes showing ₹4220.75/ha, ₹4390.44/ha, ₹4430.78/ha, ₹4732.74/ha, and ₹5067.98/ha, respectively. The average cost of plant protection chemicals was found to be ₹2576.86/ha, with large farms having the greatest cost (₹5067.98/ha), followed by medium farms (₹4732.74), semi-medium farms (₹4430.78/ha), small farms (₹4390.44/ha), and marginal farms (₹4220.75/ha). At the average farm, the interest on working capital and land revenue state or village Panchayat tax was ₹2043.34/ha (3.58%) and ₹250/ha, respectively. The cost of depreciation for fixing farm equipment and machinery was ₹1448.00 per hectare, and it rose as the farm's size did. The fact that costs A2 and A1 are identical suggests that the sampled farmers did not use the land leasing pattern. The costs of B1, B2, C1, and C2 were determined to be ₹35397.78/ha (62.10%), ₹49197.78 (86.31%), ₹38022.03/ha (66.70%), and ₹51822.03/ha (90.91%). Costs in categories B1, B2, C1, and C2 rise as farm size increases. The fact that costs A2 and A1 are the same for all farm sizes suggests that farmers did not follow the land leasing pattern. The wheat cultivation costs for B1, B2, C1, and C2 were determined to be ₹30370.5/ha (69.75 percent), ₹37170.57 (85.37 percent), ₹32783.36/ha (75.29 percent), and ₹39583.36/ha (90.91 percent), respectively. After marginal and small farms, the cost of B1, B2, C1, and C2 increases as farm size increases.

Profitability of wheat production in the Sanwer block

Table 2 presents the findings of an analysis of the income structure from wheat farming at various farm sizes. The table showed that the average farmer's yield was 34.85 qtl/ha, with large farms having the highest output (37.27 qtl/ha), followed by medium farms (36.05 qtl/ha), semi-medium farms (34.93 qtl/ha), small farms (33.45/ha), and marginal farms (32.55 qtl/ha) (Kumar et al 2025) [6] . In comparison to medium (₹2130.07/qtl), semi-medium (₹2055.08), small (₹1980.48 qtl/ha), and marginal farmers (₹1950.45/qtl), large farmers were found to sell their produce at the greatest rate (₹2230.52/qtl). This shows that large category farmers were paid more per quintal because they had more technical expertise, had marketing resources like storage, etc., and could make their product more useful over time. In contrast to farmers in major categories, small and marginal farmers were paid less per quintal. This is because small and marginal farms are having trouble selling their produce. The cultivation of wheat yielded the following results: ₹92193.33/ha, ₹57004.23/ha, ₹1063.10/qtl, ₹35189.10/ha, ₹56795.55/ha, ₹40371.30/ha, ₹45437.36/ha, and 1:1.62, respectively. In comparison to medium (₹95973.02/ha), semi-medium (₹91599.94), small (87031.06), and marginal (₹84215.15/ha), large farms had the highest gross income (value of main and by-product) from wheat farming (₹102147.48/ha). The statistics also showed that large farms had the highest net income, farm business income, family labor income, and farm investment income. Small farms (₹1029.83/qtl) and marginal farms (₹1031.38/ha) had the lowest production costs, followed by semi-medium farms (₹1062.79/qtl) and medium farms (₹1087.38/qtl). In comparison to medium farms (1:1.64), semi-medium farms

Input output ratio over different in the Sanwer Block

The return on an investment of one rupee in the production process is estimated by the input-output (B:C) ratio. The B: C ratio for wheat production over various costs was calculated, and the results are shown in Table 3. The inputoutput (B: C) ratio data shows that the return on an investment of one rupee in wheat production is more than one rupee. Costs A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, C2, and C3 were found to have an average input-output ratio of 1:2.80, 1:2.60, 1:1.87, 1:2.42, 1:1.78, and 1:1.78, respectively. Large size groups had the highest input-output ratio over total costs (1:1.70), followed by medium (1:1.64), semi-medium (1:1.61), tiny (1:1.58), and marginal (1:1.55), in that order. Wheat production was lucrative both overall and across categories, according to the estimated input-output ratio. The net return over cost A 1 found maximum on a large farm (₹ 65989.19/ha), followed by medium (₹61567.49/ha), small (₹ 55878.75ha), semi-medium (₹58707.50/ha), and marginal size of farm (₹ 54164.11/ha. Net return over cost B 1 was found in order of ₹51474.58, ₹53252.80, ₹56209.42, ₹59259.50, and ₹ 63781.44 per hectare on marginal, small semi-medium, small, medium, and large farm size respectively. In case of cost, C 1 net return per hectare was found to be maximum on a large farm(₹61250.64/ha) followed by medium (₹56696.77/ha), semi-medium (₹53637.01/ha), small (₹ 50620.19), and marginal farm size (₹48651.90). Similar trends also followed in cost C 2 and C 3 in the study area.

4. Conclusion:

The result depicted that the total cost of cultivation increased with the increase in farm size. Large farms incurred the maximum Cost C 3 (₹60166.53/ha), while marginal farms incurred the lowest (₹54299.57/ha). Expenditure on hired human labour, machinery labour, fertilizers, seeds, and irrigation constituted the major share of the total cultivation cost. Machinery labour and seed costs were relatively higher on medium and large farms, reflecting greater mechanization and the use of quality inputs. The profitability analysis showed that both grain yield and gross income increased with farm size. Large farms recorded the highest grain yield (37.27 q/ha), gross income (₹102147.48/ha), net income (₹41980.95/ha), and Benefit-Cost ratio (1.70), whereas marginal farms recorded the lowest values. The overall Benefit-Cost ratio of 1.62 indicates that wheat cultivation in the Sanwer Block is an economically viable enterprise. The findings suggest that efficient utilization of production inputs, mechanization, and improved management practices contribute significantly to enhancing wheat productivity and farm profitability.

Suggestions

References

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