Impact assessment of flue-cured virginia tobacco in mysore and hassan districts of karnataka

Abstract

Tobacco cultivation in India has unique socio-economic dimensions and provides employment to people engaged in tobacco sector among which, Flue-Cured Virginia (FCV) tobacco is an important commercial crop grown under rainfed conditions of Karnataka. While several studies have showed that farmers are benefitting from cultivation of FCV tobacco in rainfed areas, the present study aims to assess the impact of FCV tobacco crop on socio-economic status of tobacco farmers in Karnataka. The study was conducted during the year 2018–19 in Mysore and Hassan districts of Karnataka. A total of 20 tobacco and 20 non-tobacco farmers from 6 auction platforms of Karnataka (H.D. Kote, Hunsur, Periyapatna, Ramanadhapura, Kampalapura and Chilkunda) was selected and data was collected from 120 tobacco and 120 non-tobacco farmers. The average net returns/acre for own land is comparatively high for tobacco (₹30,350/acre) than maize (₹21,500/acre) and cotton (₹18,000/acre) under rainfed conditions. High level of socio-economic impact is observed for tobacco growers in terms of annual income, returns, possession of farm assets, information seeking behavior and social empowerment than non-tobacco farmers.