International Journal of Agriculture Extension and Social Development

author(s)
Rahul Kumar Kaushik, Neelam Sinha and Ankur Jaiswal

abstract
Papaya (Carica papaya), a widely cultivated horticultural fruit crop in India, is grown both in household kitchen gardens and on a commercial scale. Belonging to Caricaceae, papaya plants are sparsely branched, mostly dioecious, and produce berry-like fruits. The Caricaceae family includes six small genera and 48 species globally. This study focused on the Chhattisgarh Plains agroclimatic zone, one of the three agroclimatic zones in Chhattisgarh, encompassing 11 purposefully selected districts: Raipur, Bilaspur, Janjgir, Korba, Raigarh, Mahasamund, Durg, Kanker, Dhamtari, Kabirdham, and Rajnandgaon. The objective was to analyze the influence of area, yield, and their interaction on papaya production. Findings revealed that area expansion was the dominant factor influencing production increases in most districts. In Kabirdham and Durg, strong area effects (159.25% and 101.53%) offset negative yield impacts. Conversely, Raipur and Dhamtari showed significant yield effects (268.21% and 363.26%), which compensated for negative area influences. Raigarh displayed a balanced contribution from all three factors. Across the Chhattisgarh Plains zone, area, yield, and interaction effects contributed 48.46%, 42.21%, and 9.33%, respectively. At the state level, area effect was the most significant contributor (67.78%), followed by yield (23.58%) and interaction (8.64%). Overall, area expansion was the primary driver of increased papaya production.