Shrinking Net Sown Area: An Analysis of Changing Land Use Pattern in Bihar

Abstract

Land is vital natural resource for any developmental activity. Bihar shares about 8.63% of the total population in the country while the share in total land area of India is only 2.86%. Bihar has been divided into three agro-climatic zones such as Zone-I, Zone-II and Zone-III. The study reveals that the net sown area has declined both on zonal level and also at state level. Decline in net sown area in agro-climatic Zone-III of the state is more pronounced than that of Zone-I & Zone-II. Being centre of the state, urbanization has taken place in faster way in the Zone-III. The other reasons for changes undergoing in land use pattern may be increasing population, fragmentation of land holdings and declining water table in this region. Zone-I & Zone-II come under flood prone area, farmers put their land as current fallow due to devastating flood threat causing damage to their crops. Land under trees and groves have also witnessed positive percentage change over the decade and also in growth rate, this may be the other reason for decline in net sown area in the state. Shrinking of net sown area is of great concern to feed the upwarding growth of population. Motivating farmers to increase productivity to protect growing population and serving their demand for food and nutritional security keeping in mind the fast changing climatic conditions all over the world and protecting wasteful and careless use of natural resources for betterment of coming generation.