An economic analysis of marketable and marketed surplus of paddy in Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra

Abstract:

Paddy is an important food and income-generating crop in India and plays a significant role in the livelihood of farming households. The present study was conducted to estimate the marketable and marketed surplus of paddy and to identify the factors affecting marketable surplus among selected paddy farmers in Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra during the agricultural year 2025-2026. Primary data were collected from 90 farmers selected through a multi-stage sampling technique from Desaiganj (Wadsa), Chamorshi and Dhanora areas. The overall paddy production was 4,872 quintals, with an average productivity of 31.26 q/ha. The overall marketable surplus was 3,985.65 quintals (44.28 q/farm), while marketed surplus was 3,935.20 quintals (43.72 q/farm). Larger farmers recorded higher per-farm marketable and marketed surplus, whereas marginal farmers retained a greater proportion of their production for household and farm requirements.

Regression analysis showed that production and landholding size had positive and significant effects on marketable surplus at the 1 per cent level. Seed retained had a negative and significant effect at the 1 per cent level, while storage loss, wages paid in kind and family size had negative and significant effects at the 5 per cent level. Family consumption had a negative but non-significant effect. The coefficient of determination (R²) was 0.98, indicating that 98 per cent of the variation in marketable surplus was explained by the variables included in the model. The study suggests that increasing paddy production, improving land productivity, reducing storage losses and efficient management of farm and household requirements can help enhance marketable surplus and strengthen the market participation and income of paddy farmers in Gadchiroli district.