DOI: 10.36347/sjavs.2019.v06i10.007

Pages: 256-261

Land is one of the important natural resources. Without land agriculture can’t even be imagined. Many challenges are faced by agriculture due to land and water scarcity and pressure on natural resources. The cultivation of land is on a decreasing scale due to the high population growth. In the study attempt has been made to assess the dynamics of land use pattern in Eastern India. Secondary data related to land use pattern were used from 1990-91 to 2017-18. Growth rates, instability indices and location coefficients were computed to assess the status of net sown area (NSA) in the region. Further, regression model was applied to identify the factors influencing NSA in the region. Area under non-agricultural uses and total fallow land were found increasing consequently, the NSA registered a sharp decline from 44.54% in 1990 to 37.92% in 2018. Eastern India and all the constituent states except Assam registered significant and negative growth in NSA. Instability index for Eastern India was found comparatively high in period-II. In case of states, instability indices for all the periods under study was comparatively high in Jharkhand followed by Bihar. Assam registered comparatively low instability in all the periods under investigation. Location coefficients were computed to assess the spatial dynamics of net sown area over the last 28 years across different states of Eastern India and results revealed that during 2017-18, location coefficients were lower in all the states as compared to other periods of time. The factors responsible for declined NSA were ratio to urban population to total population, length of road Km-1 of geographical area, population density (Km-1), land put to non-agricultural uses (lakh ha) and rainfall (mm). Factors taken into consideration had reducing and non-significant effect on NSA except rainfall. Adequate rainfall during season could enhance the NSA in the region.