Commodities have determined the fate and fortune of nations for years and would continue to do so in future through the volatility prevailing in their markets. Volatility in agricultural commodity prices originates mainly from the supply shocks, and with short run demand and supply elasticity coefficients acute price fluctuations arise. Agricultural commodity futures being blamed for food inflation in India, much interest revived among researchers, academicians, regulators and policy makers in examining the performance of futures and its relevance to the small scale production system...

Increasing crop productivity with optimal use of resources is a prime concern to ensure food security. Fertilizer is a key input and costly resource in our endeavor to increase the food production. Hence efficient use of fertilizers has its own significance. This book elaborates the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) in estimating the technical efficiency of crop production with respect to resource use and the possible ways to augment the crop production.