PPP Special 08 - Institut für Entwicklungs- und Agrarökonomik

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A questionnaire with mainly closed questions was used for farmer
interviews during the season 2002/2003 (Dec. 2002). The survey was
carried out in three talukas 7 of Dharwad district (Hubli, Dharwad,
Kalghatagi) and one taluka of Belgaum district (Bailhongal) in
Karnataka. These areas were chosen to ensure comparability of data,
as they are all located in the same agro-ecological zone.
3.3 Indicators / data obtained by questionnaire
3.3.1 Land holding and cropping pattern
The variable included was the total area of land, both owned and
rented. Based on the extent of land holding farmers were categorised in
five categories:
Below 1 ha
1-2 ha
2.1-4 ha
4.1-10 ha
Marginal Farmers
Small Farmers
Semi-Medium Farmers
Medium Farmers
above 10 ha Large Farmers
Moreover, information about land usage in Kharif (late summer) and
Rabi8 season was compiled. The extent of crops grown by the farmers
was obtained including the seasons 2001/2002 and 2002/2003.
3.3.2 Cotton production data
a) Cost of cultivation
In order to estimate the cost of cultivation, cost of labour (including land
preparation, hire-charges for bullocks and farm machinery), cost of
seeds, fertilizer, pesticides and irrigation were recorded.
The costs were calculated as following:
labour costs based on wage rates of hired labour.
seed costs based on quantity per hectare
pesticides, fertilizer, irrigation costs: US$/ha
b) Seed-cotton yield
7 Taluka is an administrative unit comprising a group of villages within the district.
8 Kharif: Late Summer Season, Rabi: Winter Season (in India three seasons occur over the year, the third season is
summer)