Cost and Return Analysis of Cricket Bats Manufacturing Industry in Kashmir Valley of India

Abstract

Cricket Bats manufacturing industry is a very prominent segment of the sports goods industry in Kashmir valley. Cricket bats are manufactured from willow wood which is found in abundance in Kashmir valley owing to its peculiar climatic conditions. Although, this industry has got promising prospects to flourish due to huge demand-supply gap, yet its growth has remained, by and large, restricted to District Anantnag only. With this backdrop, the present study was conducted to actually examine the status and viability of this industry. A detailed cost and return analysis has been worked out for a sample of 20 percent constituting about 40 industrial units chosen through random sampling technique. After a thorough analysis, net return per rupee of investment ratio works out to be 1.60, meaning thereby that this industry is reaping abnormal profits. There is further evidence that the condition of increasing returns to scale prevails. However, our cost analysis suggests that raw material in the form of willow wood constitutes about 50 per cent of cost of production, hence imposing checks to its further expansion. Furthermore, about 80 per cent of the sample entrepreneurs in this activity were found in the working age population, having some level of educational qualifications, sole proprietorship with more than 10 years of experience.