Quality jaggery production and its marketing forenhancing sugarcane farmers' income in Uttar Pradesh-Issues and challenges

This study based on data collected from 60 small scale units involved in sugarcanecultivation, jaggery production and its marketing during year 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20. The studyrevealed that implementation of Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojna (RKVY), Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) has providedadditional employment opportunities to rural workers through jaggery processing, entrepreneur's development. Ithas reduced the labour migration from villages to nearby industrial townships. The sugarcane farmers reveals that the labour wages havedoubled for jaggery making and agriculture works It has increased cost of sugarcane productionand jaggery making. It has negative effect on net profit of farmers and jaggery units. The study has indicated that the number of start-ups, skill and entrepreneurshave which provides employment opportunities to rural youths. The study concludes that the jaggery unit layout plan should be compact and adhere with hygiene norms for product quality. The plant basedorganic and eco-friendly clarificants should be used to minimise use of chemical clarificants. The government should provide economic incentives to modernize old units and establish new IISR model jaggery units. Theself-help groups and FPOs should be involved in jaggery production, packaging, branding and marketing.