Economic Viability of Selected Soil Fertility and Soil Health Improving Technologies in Pakistan
Economic Viability of Selected Soil Fertility and Soil Health Improving Technologies in Pakistan
Abid Hussain1*, Hassnain Shah1, Muhammad Nadeem Iqbal2 and Tariq Sultan3
ABSTRACT
Maintenance of soil fertility and improvement of soil health are indispensable to obtain better crop productivity. Various research institutions in Pakistan have developed, and promoted several technologies for sustainable soil management and to improve crop productivity. These technologies include use of micronutrients for citrus fruits and their application for off-season vegetables, use of Biozote for wheat crop, and Pak Seeder technology for sowing wheat crop by zero-till method. Keeping this in view, economic viabilities of these technologies have been determined through marginal analysis. Unfortunately, Pak-seeder technology could not be demonstrated effectively due to few institutional and technical limitations. Thus, technical issues in its manufacturing as well as its use are highlighted. The study is based on the outcomes of six demonstration sites of micronutrients’ use for citrus and thirteen sites for vegetables’ production in tunnels viz. chili peppers, bell peppers, cucumber and bottle gourds, twenty Biozote technology sites for wheat crop, and six Pak Seeder technology sites for planting wheat. Use of micronutrients resulted in better fruit setting and productivity in citrus by 12.5 percent and 15.0 percent, respectively. Sample farmers reported that use of the technology resulted in premium prices of the produce by ten percent. Benefit cost ratio of micronutrients use for citrus orchards was 5.71. Use of micronutrients for off-season vegetables resulted into even better gains; increased productivity of chili pepper, cucumber, bottle gourd and bell papers by 31.9, 40.6, 29.9 and 11.1 percent; with benefit cost ratios of 28.1, 17.4, 15.0 and 11.4, respectively. Similarly, application of Biozote for wheat production increased the productivity by 10.8 percent, with a benefit cost ratio of 8.2. Extensive dissemination and demonstration of these economically viable technologies for their speedy adoption is need of the hour. Similarly, there is a need to improve farmers’ access to these technologies for large-scale adoption.
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