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Adoption and Diffusion of Power Tillers in Bangladesh

M. A. Quayum
Senior Scientific Officer
Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), Gazipur

Amin Muhammad Ali
Professor
Department of Economics, respectively, Jahangirnagar University, Savar, Dhaka, Bangladesh

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

The present study examines the extent of adoption of power tillers (PT) in Bangladesh and analyzes the variation in adoption across regions and across farms in selected areas to investigate the justification for wider use of power tillers. Primary and secondary data were used. Primary data were collected from 267 sample farmers from eight villages of four upazilas of four districts using proportionately stratified random sampling technique. Secondary data were collected from different published sources. The average growth rate of power tillers in Bangladesh was 21.0 percent during 1993-2003. Power tillers are unevenly distributed all over the country. The highest and the lowest adoption of power tillers were 44.4 and 3.6 percent in Rajshahi and Barisal divisions respectively. The percentage of area cultivated under power tiller is 69.6. Multiple regression analysis indicates that there is a significant relationship between number of PT and credit availability. The credit availability may be a decisive factor in increasing cropping intensity which requires reduction of turnaround time. Irrigated area, number of small farm holdings and credit availability are found to have significant and positive association with intensity of power tiller use in different regions of Bangladesh. Analysis of Logit Model applied to farm level data indicates that the educational level and income surplus of farmers have significant positive relationship with ownership of power tillers. The coefficients of adult family members and number of draught power owned by the farmers are however found to be significantly negative. The number of power tiller is increasing with the decreasing of draught animal power. Thus credit should be provided to the farmers and owners of all regions of the country to buy power tillers to adopt evenly to increase crop production profitably.

Keywords: Diffusion, Power tillers, Growth rate, Distribution, Credit availability.

Location: Chandina, Nandigram, Chuadanga sadar, and Singair Upazilas selected from Comilia, Bogra, Chuadanga, and Manikgonj districts of Bangladesh

Start Date: 00-04-2003

End Date: 00-12-2003

Program Area: Farm Mechanization

Commodity: Power Tiller

Objectives:

To determine the growth of power tillers adoption in Bangladesh;
To analyze the diffusion of power tiller technology at regional and national level in Bangladesh agriculture; and
To know the reasons of purchasing power tillers by the farmers.

Methodology:

Four upazilas, namely Chandina, Nandigram, Chuadanga sadar, and Singair were randomly selected from Comilia, Bogra, Chuadanga, and Manikgonj districts of Bangladesh, respectively. Two villages were randomly selected from one agricultural block of the selected upazilas. Selected villages were Rushulpur and Lona of Chandina, Nandigram and Chakalma of Nandigram, Shangkarchandra and Manikdihi of Chuadanga sadar, and Luxmipur and Beguntahary of Singair. A sample frame was developed from the comprehensive farmers list of Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) for each village. Sample farmers were stratified into four stratum by the help of DAE and key informant farmers of the respective villages. Stratum were (i) PT owner farmers (those who both own and use PT), (ii) PT hirer- user farmers (those who hire and use PT), (iii) draught animal power owner farmers (those who both own and use DAP) and (iv) draught animal power hirer- user farmers (those who hire and use DAP). Farmers those who used both power tiller and draught animal power in the same plot for land preparation were identified and not considered as sample. Stratified random sampling technique was followed for selecting sample farms proportionately from each stratum. Structure questionnaires were used for collecting data from the farmers of the developed stratum (e.g, PT owner- users, PT hirer- users, bullock power owner- users, and bullock power hirer-users). Sample size was 267. Among those 180 were power tiller users (41 PT owners and 139 PT hirers) and 87 were bullock power users (58 DAP owners and 29 DAP hirers). Survey was done during April 2003 to December 2003.

Source of Information: Bangladesh J. Agril. Res. 37(2): 307-325, June 2012, ISSN 0258-7122

Article Link (Online Journal):

Funding Source:

1.

Budget:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

The number of power tillers and its growth rate unevenly increased in Bangladesh in the past. The proportion of power tillers to the total number of power tillers is the highest in Rajshahi division. The annual growth rate of power tillers is the highest in Dhaka division. There are so many power tillers in some divisions because the lands of those divisions are environmentally more suitable for using power tillers. Multiple regression analysis revealed that the number of power tillers per unit of net cropped area has an insignificant positive relationship with agricultural wage rate. The extent of landless holdings is found to be a constraint which reduces mechanization significantly. The coefficients of irrigated area, credit availability per net cropped area and wage rate per day indicated that these variables affected farm mechanization and the credit availability may be a decisive factor because with the expansion of credit availability the number of PTs increased for land preparation for multiple cropping to increase total crop production as well as cropping intensity reducing turn-around time and cost. The identification of the principal constraints or factors promoting wider diffusion of PT innovation may also help formulating policy measures for its rapid and wider adoption to increase food production in Bangladesh.

Knowledge Management: Journal