Agricultural Productivity and Farm Price Realisation in Raichur District, Karnataka: A Taluk-wise Analysis of Crop Yields and Paddy Prices

Agricultural performance varies significantly across districts, and district-level averages can obscure crucial differences in crop productivity and farm price realisation. This study examines the variation in agricultural productivity and the Grade-A paddy Farm Harvest Price (FHP) in the Raichur District of Karnataka. The analysis is based on secondary data from the "District at a Glance – Raichur Statistical Report, FY 2024–25," published by the Department of Economics and Statistics, Government of Karnataka.
We analyse taluk-wise productivity of major Kharif and Rabi crops for the 2023–24 season, along with the Grade-A paddy FHP and the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for 2024–25. The methods used include percentage analysis, productivity gaps, absolute differences, FHP–MSP margins, and descriptive comparisons, correlation analysis and paired samples T test.
The results reveal substantial variation in crop productivity among the taluks. In Kharif 2023–24, paddy productivity ranges from 3,534 kg/ha in Raichur to 4,462 kg/ha in Maski, demonstrating significant spatial differences. The analysis of Grade-A paddy prices shows that the FHP exceeds the MSP of ₹2,300 per quintal across all cultivating taluks, although margins range from ₹147 to ₹539 per quintal. Sindhanuru records the highest FHP at ₹2,839 per quintal, while Raichur has the lowest at ₹2,447 per quintal.
Interestingly, the findings indicate that higher paddy productivity does not consistently lead to higher FHP across the taluks. This study highlights the notable differences in paddy productivity among the taluks but does not establish a clear relationship between productivity and FHP.
The study recommends that agricultural policy in Raichur should shift from a production-centred approach to an integrated framework that combines productivity enhancement with improved market access and price realisation. Suggested policy directions include taluk-specific extension services, enhanced post-harvest infrastructure, stronger procurement and market linkages, collective marketing efforts, and better integration of productivity, cost, and price data. Additionally, it emphasises the importance of multi-year and farm-level research to identify the factors influencing spatial differences in productivity and price realisation.

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