A Spatio-Temporal Changes in Cropping Pattern and Cropping Intensity in Agriculture to Get a Business Profit in Jammu and Kashmir

In the present paper an attempt has been made to analyze spatio-temporal changes in cropping pattern and cropping intensity in agriculture of Jammu and Kashmir. Data were obtained from Statistical Abstract of Jammu and Kashmir. Copping pattern and cropping intensity have been presented in the percentage forms. Results of the study reveal that cropping pattern is much diverse with high level of cropping intensity in agriculture of the state. It has been found that maize is still most cultivated crop in the state, covering an area of 27.4 % to total cropped area during 2010-11. Wheat has been found second most cultivated crop with increasing trend of area. The area under rice and pulses crop has decreased rapidly over the period. Cropping intensity has also continuously increased from 119.70% in 1965-66 to 155.79 % in 2010-11. The highest cropping intensity has been recorded in samba (212.63%) whereas lowest registered in Kupwara (100%) district of the state.


I. Introduction
Agriculture plays a very important role for development of economy of Jammu and kashmir State.About 70% of the population in the State gets livelihood directly or indirectly fromthe Agriculture and allied Sectors.Jammu Kashmir extends between 32° 17´ N to 37 ° 6´ N latitude and 73° 26´ to 80° 30´ longitudeand is divided in to three agro climatic zone namely Jammu (subtropical zone), Kashmir(temperate zone) and Ladakh (cold arid zone ) having their distinct geoclimatic conditions which largely determines the cropping pattern and productivity of crops.Paddy is the dominant crop ofKashmir zone, followed by maize, oilseeds, pulses, fruits and vegetables, fodder and wheat.In of case Jammu region, wheat is the main crop followed by maize, paddy, pulses, oilseeds, fodder, fruits and vegetables and other crops while in Ladakh zone, barley is the chiefcereal crop followed by wheat and pulses.
The area under rice, maize and wheat crops together account for about 84.00 % of total cropped area under food crops andproduce around 97.9% of total food grains.Cropping pattern is the percentage share of an area under different crops in a particular region during a particular agricultural year.Changing cropping pattern means the fluctuation and variations that occurred in these percentages with time.A change or shift in the cropping pattern implies a change in the proportion of area under different crops which depends to a large extent on the Geographical factors of the region.Moreover, the development of marketing infrastructure and the demand pattern of the people are also factor which affect cropping pattern (Hussain, 1979).Cropping Pattern is however, a dynamic concept as it changes over space and time.It is largely determined by climate, soil, availability of irrigation facilities, level of energy use and the socio-economic factors of aof a region.Cropping Intensity refers to raising of a number of crops in a specific agricultural field during an agricultural year.It is the ratio between net sown areas (NSA) to gross cropped area (GRA).Cropping intensity is closely related to irrigation facilities, consumption of fertilizers, crop combination and rotation, mixed cropping and relay cropping etc.Thus high cropping intensity means high level of agricultural development.

II. Materials and Methods
The Present study is primarily based on secondary data obtained from various issues of Digest of Statistics and other publications of the Directorate of Economics andStatistics, Government of Jammu and Kashmir, for the period 1965-66 to 2010-11.Cropping pattern shows the proportional area under various crops to total cropped area in the study area.Proportional area of various crops has been calculated with the help of total cropped area.Cropping intensity has been calculated by the ratio of net sown area to gross cropped area and multiplied by 100.Gross cropped area is the addition of net sown area and area sown more than once.Net sown area refers to total area sown with crops and orchards counting area sown more than once in the same year only once (Agricultural Census, 2011).Formula of Cropping intensity express as: Gross Cropped Area Cropping Intensity x 100 Net Area Sown
Cropping Intensity has continuously increased with the augment of gross cropped areaover the period in agriculture of Jammu and Kashmir ( There has been also found much variation in the spatial pattern of cropping Intensity in agriculture of Jammu and Kashmir (

IV. Conclusion
It can be concluded from the results of the study that Jammu and Kashmir, is more advanced in view of agricultural development with diversified cropping pattern and high level of cropping intensity.Wheat, paddy and maizehave been found as major cultivated crops in agriculture of the state which covered more than sixty per cent area of the total cropped area.Other food crops jowar and barley have been recorded as miner grown crops.There is much need to take appropriate steps for increasing the area of pulses as area under pulses has rapidly declined over the period in the state.The level of cropping intensity has reached at the saturation level in almost all districts of the state excluding Kargil, Leh, Baramullah and Kupwara district.

Table 1 . 1 :
Temporal Changes in Cropping Pattern in Jammu and Kashmir (1965-66 to 2010-11) Statistical Abstract of Jammu and Kashmir, 2012, Department of Economic and Statistical Analysis, Government of Jammu and Kashmir.

Table 1 . 4 :
District-wise Pattern of Cropping Intensity in Agriculture of jammu and kashmir, 2011-12