The present study was conducted in Manipur which has the highest area and production of pineapple among the North Eastern Hill Region of India. Two hilly districts of Manipur namely Senapati and Churachandpur were selected based on highest area under pineapple. It was found that the pineapple cultivation is economically feasible. It is evident that the cost C3 of pineapple for 4-year period is ` 315620.60 per hectare with a total return of ` 571459.64 per hectare and the overall net return is ` 255839.04 per hectare. The investment in cultivation of pineapple in hilly districts of Manipur is profitable as further indicated by the benefit cost ratio which is 1.71. Therefore, pineapple cultivation could be an important source of livelihood and income of the farmers. It was found that farmers in Manipur faced many problems in the marketing of pineapple. These are lack of proper transportation which ranked first followed by unavailability of nearby market, unavailability of storage facility, low price of the product and lack of processing unit. It is suggested that the early fruit bearing and stress tolerant varieties may be recommended to make pineapple orchard more profitable as there is no return in 1st year of its establishment. Similarly, organic certification of this crop may be initiated either by the government or private agencies as organic cultivation is followed by default in this state which may attract the exporters and consumers and thereby investment in marketing may be enhanced.

Highlights

• The investment in cultivation of pineapple in hilly districts of Manipur is profitable.
• The BCR exceeding one indicates that the pineapple cultivation is expected to generate incremental value.
• Cultivation of pineapple could be an important source of livelihood and income keeping in view the major problems encounter by the farmers.