Performance Evaluation of Manual Reaper Available in Bangladesh

Considering fragmented lands, time consumption of manual harvesting andpostharvest loss during harvesting, the performance of manual reaper was evaluated in this study.An ACI imported manual reaper was used to harvest rice on different plots in Aman season.Average field capacity of ACI imported manual reaper was found 0.3485 ha/day where manualharvesting field capacity was 0.03107 ha/man-day. Labor requirement for harvesting includingmaking bundle and collecting was 24 man-hr/ha and 180 man-hr/ha for manual reaper andmanual harvesting respectively. Average fuel consumption (0.755 L/hr) was observed for ACIimported manual reaper, which was proved to be 11.2 times more efficient compared to manualharvesting. The break-even point of an ACI imported manual reaper was 0.4 ha. Therefore,application of a manual reaper would be efficient mechanization for harvesting rice inAgricultural sector of Bangladesh.