Constraints faced by the Respondents in Cultivation of Betel Vine in Malappuram District of Kerala

Abstract

Betel vine (Piper betel L. ) in India is grown as an important cash crop across the 
states, of, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu, Assam, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, 
Tripura ,Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. A study was 
undertaken in Malappuram district of Kerala for analysis of constraints faced by the 
farmers in betel vine cultivation covering Tanur block taking six villages selected 
purposively where the crop is grown as a major crop. A total 120 betel vine growers were 
selected randomly from six villages. It is observed that nearly half of the respondents felt 
the constraints were severe (45%) in betel vine cultivation, followed by not severe (31.66%) 
and very severe (23.33%). Most of the respondents experienced labour shortage or high 
labour cost as the most problematic constraint, the study further indicated that the second 
most important constraint found was price fluctuation followed by water scarcity, 
transportation and insects and diseases.