AN INVESTIGATION INTO COST AND REVENUE OF ONION PRODUCTION IN AZAD JAMMU KASHMIR

This study is based on primary data; collected from eighty onion producers of Hattian Bala area of district Muzaffarabad. Onion is grown throughout the area but tehsil Hattian Bala is well pronounced for its production; so this area was selected for the study. It was observed that the cost of seedlings proved to be the highest operational cost i.e. Rs.3200/-per acre, followed by Rs.2400/- on farm yard manure (FYM) and Rs.1600/- on land preparation per acre. It was obvious from the data that marketing of onion was a big problem in study area due to absence of proper marketing system. Majority (93%) of the respondents sold their onion to beopari and remaining took their produce to wholesale market of Muzaffarabad; but results indicated that the producer who sold his produce through wholesale market fetched more profit than selling through beopari. Seven percent respondents, who sold their produce to wholesale market, spent Rs.2880/- per acre on transportation and Rs.2016/- on bags wholesale market was Rs.16554/- as compared to Rs.9970/- sold to beopari. Net return in case of wholesale market and beopari was Rs. 22758/- and Rs.22142/- respectively. The reason for the higher return by selling in wholesale market was better price received by the producer. Likewise input-output ratio in both cases was calculated as 1: 2.37 and 1: 3.22, respectively and this difference in input-output ratio is due to difference in involvement of marketing cost spent y the producer