THE PRODUCTION AND MARKETING OF BANANA IN VILAVANCODE TALUK

India is the largest banana producer in the world and the cultivators face many problems during cultivation. The productivity of banana in India is far from satisfactory. At present the development of agriculture does not merely depend upon increasing the agricultural produce and productivity, but also upon the promotion of a better and well organized marketing by which the agricultural goods are moved from the field of the farmer to the places of ultimate consumers. When one looks into the production aspect of banana cultivation, it seems that the farmers face several financial problems. In the study area majority of the farmers are not able to get cheap loan facilities to finance the expenditure involved in banana cultivation. One of the most ruthlessly exploited segments of Indian community is that of the farmers. As the small farmers are hard pressed for cash to meet postponed consumption needs and to pay off debts, they have to sell their produce soon after the harvest, when the price is low. Banana production is seasonal in nature while its demand is inelastic. This also affects the price fixation. There is a large variation in the quality of banana which makes their grading and standardization somewhat difficult. More than 60 per cent of the population in the selected area of vilavancode taluk of Kanyakumari District depends on agriculture. Hence a lot of marketing activities are going on in this area. This taluk is solely dependent on agriculture. So a survey has been undertaken to study the process of socio demographic profile, production and marketing of banana and problems in cultivation and marketing.