Analysis of Changes in Crop Combination Regions in Dhule District, Maharashtra, India

Abstract

The present paper attempts to demarcate the crop combination regions at district, tahsil and circle level and also
study the spatio-temporal changes in them. For the present study, area under different crops during the period
1980-83, 1990-93, 2000-03 have been collected from socio-economic reviews of Dhule district. The data at circle
level for the period 2002-05 have been collected from tahsil and circle offices. Weaver’s and Doi’s methods are
applied to identify crop combinations.

Study reveals that the district as a whole can be recognized as four crop combination region in recent
years. Bajra is the chief crop combining with cotton, jowar and groundnut. At tahsil level, Dhule also reported
similar combination. Three crops combination was confined to Shindkheda tahsil by both methods. Here cotton
was the predominant crop combining with jowar and bajra. In Shirpur and Sakri tahsils multi-crop
combinations were obtained by Weaver’s method, while four crops combination resulted by Doi’s method. In
Shirpur and Sakri tahsils cotton and bajra were leading crops respectively. Circlewise analysis obtained by
Doi’s method indicates that in five out of thirty two circles there was two crops combination. Eleven circles
recorded three crops combination, while in fourteen circles four crops combination was noticed. Five and six
crops combination were noticed only in Brahmanwel and Dahiwel circle respectively.