Factors encouraging complete adoption of agricultural technologies: The case of hybrid rice cultivation in India

Hybrid rice is considered as one of the technologies having the potential to push the production frontier to meet the growing demand for rice in India. The technology was introduced in India in 1994 but is yet to see widespread adoption. The purpose of this paper is to identify the factors that influence the partial/complete adoption of hybrid rice technology by the farmers in India. This study also assesses the factors behind difference in the share of land allocated to hybrid rice cultivation by farmers.

The study employs a Tobit model to evaluate the impact of factors related to technology, farmer, farm and geographical location on the decision to adopt hybrid rice. Data for this study are compiled from surveys of 441 hybrid rice growing farmers across 3 Indian states conducted during 2012-2013.

The paper finds that farmers with smaller landholdings, higher education and higher experience of growing hybrid rice are more likely to be complete adopters. Farmers reporting good demand for hybrid rice output and availability of subsidy on hybrid rice seeds also have higher probability of being complete adopters. However, the availability of hybrid rice seeds in government outlets and cultivating multiple kharif crops are negatively related to the extent of hybrid rice adoption. The results suggest insignificant impact of age, family size, ownership of cattle and machinery on the adoption level of hybrid rice by the farmers.

Although the sample for this study has been collected from three states with different agro-climatic zones and productivity, the results cannot be generalized for other states.

There is a great potential to increase the area under hybrid rice cultivation in India. This study is one of the first attempts to look at the adoption levels of hybrid rice in India and determine the factors which might be hindering the complete adoption of the technology. Focusing on the factors positively related to complete adoption can help in enhancing the area under hybrid rice and similar approach can be used for other new agricultural technologies in the developing country context.