Litchi Production and Marketing in Bihar, India

In the last two and half decades, litchi production in India grew at more than 3.5 percent per anum. During the reference period, around 60 per cent of increase in production was due to increase in area and 22 per cent due to increase in yield. India had become an important exporter of litchi in the 1990s. Exports were largely elastic to the unit value of exports (UVE)/price. The UVE has however decreased in the recent decade as exports of litchi shifted from developed (high UVE) to the low UVE neighboring countries. The state-wise production showed mixed results on area and productivity of litchi. Bihar dominated litchi production; the yield of litchi started declining since 2000s. Inspite of it, the area under litchi continues to increase in Bihar. An investigation into this perplexing issue in Bihar suggests the presence of the “absent landowners†and their abundance. This is also evident with dominance of a marketing channel where the farmer receives only one fourth of the consumer price. There are many institutions related to litchi production and exports, but their performance needs to be evaluated.