CHAPTER 4: Villages along with detailed information pertaining to socio-economic,

Transcription

1 CHAPTER 4: SOCIO-ECONOMIC PROFILE OF THE STUDY AREA This chapter presents detailed profile of the region/area selected for the study in two sections. The salient features of Karnataka State, Bellary and Gadag districts are given in Section I while Section II describes the profile of Taluk and Villages along with detailed information pertaining to socio-economic, demographic and agricultural characteristics of the sample farmers and households chosen for the study. In order to analyze the micro objective, an empirical investigation was undertaken in three villages namely, Ganikanahal (irrigated) and Chaganur (semi-irrigated) in Bellary District and Huilgol (dry region) in Gadag district of Karnataka. Section I 4.1 Profile of Karnataka Karnataka is the eighth largest state in India in terms of geographical size and a home to 5.28 crore People (2001 Census) accounting for 5.1 percent of India s population. Historical Background: Karnataka, is called as Karunadu (elevated land) in ancient times, had witnessed a horde of historical activities since the ancient prehistoric civilization where legends associate it to the Land of the forefathers of Bhagirath and to the Lord Shiva. Adding new dimensions to the cultural and 99

2 spiritual ethos of the land by many great dynasties left their imprint upon the aesthetic development of Karnataka. Prominent among them were the Chalukyas, the Hoysalas and mighty Vijayanagara Empire. During 19 th century, whole of Karnataka came under British rule. After Indian independence, the new state was named as new Mysore and the Maharaja of Mysore was appointed Governor by independent India. The State of Karnataka was formed on the 1 st November 1956 under the States Reorganization Act; this unified state was renamed as Karnataka on November 1, Bangalore is its capital city and comprises of 29 districts. Location and Boundaries: Karnataka lies between 74 and 78 East longitudes and 11 and 18 North latitudes. It is situated on a tableland where the Western and Eastern Ghats ranges converge into the Nilgiri hill complex. It is situated on the western edge of the Deccan plateau and is surrounded by Maharashtra and Goa on the north, Andhra Pradesh on the east, and Tamil Nadu and Kerala on the South. On the west, it opens out on the Arabian Sea. The State extends to about 700 km from North to South and about 400 km from East to West, and covers an area of about 1,91,791 sq.km, which is unevenly spread over 27,481 inhabited villages, 747 Hoblis, 176 Taluks and 29 Districts Physiographical, Karnataka State forms a part of two well defined macro regions of Indian Union; the Deccan Plateau and the Coastal plains and Islands. The State has four physiographic regions they are: 1. Northern Plateau comprises of the districts of Belgaum, Bidar, Bijapur and Gulbarga and is largely composed of Deccan Trap. It represents a 100

3 monotonous extensive plateau with a general elevation of 300 to 600 meters from the mean sea level. However the river plains of the Krishna, the Bhima, the Ghataprabha and the Malaprabha, step like landscapes, lateritic escarpments, residual hills and ridges break the monotony of this extensive plateau. The general slope is towards the east. This region is largely covered with rich black cotton soil. 2. Central Plateau covers the districts of Bellary, Chikkamagalur, Chitradurga, Dharwad, Raichur and Shimoga. The region represents the transitional area between the Northern Plateau of Deccan Trap and southern Plateau. By and large, this region represents the area of Thungabhadra basin. The general elevation varies between 450 and 700 meters. The general slope of this region is towards the east. 3. Southern Plateau covers the districts of Bangalore, Bangalore Rural, Hassan, Kodagu, Kolar, Mandya, Mysore and Tumkur. This region largely covers the area of the Cauvery river basin lying in Karnataka. It is bounded by 600 meters contour and is characterized by a higher degree of slope. In the west and south, the ranges of Western Ghats enclose it and the northern part is an interrupted but clearly identifiable high plateau. In the east the valleys of the Cauvery and its tributaries open out to form undulating plains. The general elevation of the region varies from 600 to 900 metres. However, residual heights of 1,500 to 1,750 meters are found in the Biligirirangana hills of Mysore district and the Brahmagiri range of Kodagu district. 101

4 4. Coastal Region which extends between the Western Ghats, edge of the Karnataka Plateau in the east and the Arabian Sea in the West, covers South Canara and North Canara districts. Several ridges and spurs of Western Ghats traverse this region. It has difficult terrain full of rivers, creeks, peaks and ranges of hills. The coastal region consists of two broad physical units, the plains and the Western Ghats. The Coastal plains represent a narrow stretch of estuarine and marine plains. The abrupt rise at the eastern flanks forms the Western Ghats. The northern parts of the Ghats are of lower elevation ( meters) as compared to Southern parts (900 to 1,500 meters). The Coastal belt with an average width of 50 to 80 km covers a distance of about 267 km. from north to south. Water Resources Karnataka accounts for about six per cent of the country's surface water resources of 17 lakh million cubic meters. About 40 percent of this is available in the east flowing rivers and the remaining from west flowing rivers. There are seven river basins and tributaries in the State, viz. Krishna, Cauvery, Godavari, West flowing rivers, Pennar rnd, Palar Rainfall The annual rainfall in the State varies roughly from 50 to 350 cm. In the districts of Bijapur, Raichur, Bellary and southern half of Gulbarga, the rainfall is lowest varying from 50 to 60 cm. The rainfall increases significantly in the 102

5 western part of the State and reaches its maximum over the coastal belt. Southwest monsoon is the principal rainy season during which the State receives 80 per cent of its rainfall. Rainfall in the winter season (January to February) is less than one per cent of the annual total, in the hot weather season (March to May) about 7 per cent and in the post-monsoon season about 12 per cent. Southwest monsoon normally sets in over the extreme southern parts of the State by about 1 st of June and covers the entire State by about 10 th of June. The rainy months are July and August accounted individually to about 30 per cent and 18 per cent of annual rainfall. There are about 26 rainy days (with daily rainfall of at least 2.5 mm) in the southwest monsoon begins from the northern parts of the State around 2 nd week of October and by the 15 th October monsoon withdraws from the entire State. The retreating monsoon current i.e. the north-east monsoon (October to December) effects the eastern parts of South Interior Karnataka and accounts for about 30 per cent of rainfall in this region. Out of 14 heavy rainfall stations in India, with annual rainfall of more than 500 cm. four stations are situated in Karnataka, viz., Agumbe in Tirthahalli taluk of Shimoga district (annual rainfall-828 cm) and Bhagamandala (603 cm), Pullingoth (594 cm) and Makut (505 cm) in Kodagu district. (Source: Agro Climatic Zones of Karnataka Based on rainfall pattern, topography, soil characteristics, cropping patterns etc., ten 103

6 agro climatic zones are identified in Karnataka to achieve the objectives of higher productivity through location specific and production oriented research which would facilitate the extension agencies to have location specific recommendations for adoption. A map of Karnataka showing districts, agro climatic zones and regional boundaries is given in Map 1, the salient features of each zone is also given in Table 4.1. Table 4.1: Agro-climatic Zones and Characteristics of Karnataka Sl. No. Region 1 North Eastern Transition 2 North Eastern Dry Zone 3 Northern Dry Zone Rainfall range in mm To To To Soil Shallow to medium black clay soils in major areas. Red lateritic soils in remaining areas. Deep to very deep black clay soils in major areas. Shallow to medium black soils in minor pockets. Black clay medium and deep in major areas, sand loams in remaining areas. Total area (Ha) Districts Gross cropped (Ha). Net cropped area (Ha). Total irrigated area (Ha) Bidar Bijapur, Bellary, Dharwad, Parts of Belgaum, Gadag, Bagalkote, Koppal, Parts of Raichur Gulbarga, Parts Raichur of

7 4 Central Dry Zone 5 Eastern Dry Zone 6 Southern Dry Zone 7 Southern Transition Zone 8 Northern Transition To To To To To Red Sandy loams in major areas, shallow to deep black soil in remaining areas. Red loamy soils in major areas, clay lateritic soils in remaining areas. Red sandy loams in major areas and in remaining areas, pockets of black soils. Red sandy loams in major areas and in remaining areas, red loamy soils. Shallow to medium black clay soils and red sandy loamy soils in equal proportion Parts of Tumkur, Chitradurga, Davangere, Parts of Chikmagalur Bengalore Rural and Urban, Kolar, Tumkur Mysore, Tumkur, Mandya, Chamrajnagar Parts of Hasan, Parts of Mandya, Parts of Mysore Parts of Dharwad, Parts of Belgaum, Haveri

8 9 Hilly Zone 10 Coastal Zone To To Red clay loamy soils in major areas. Red lateritic and coastal alluvial Parts of Uttara kanada, Parts of Chikmagalur, Parts of Dharwad, Kodagu, Parts of Hasan, Shimoga, parts of Belgaum Dakshina Kanada, Udupi, Uttara Kanada Source: (accessed on 22/02/2011) Salient socio-economic features of the state are given in Table 4.2. In Karnataka state is better placed in terms of decadal growth rate, Infant mortality rate, maternal mortality rate, sex ratio, BPL percentage and also female literacy rates when compared with national average. Table 4.2: Salient Features of the State Sl. ITEM KARNATAKA INDIA NO. 1 Total population (Census 2001) (in millions) Decadal Growth (Census 2001) (%) Crude Birth Rate (SRS 2008) Crude Death Rate (SRS 2008) Total Fertility Rate (SRS 2008) Infant Mortality Rate (SRS 2008) Maternal Mortality Ratio (SRS ) Sex Ratio (Census 2001) Population below Poverty line (%) Schedule Caste population (in million) Schedule Tribe population (in million) Female Literacy Rate (Census 2001) (%) Source: 106

9 Demography: The state has a population of about crocre (52.85 million) out of which 2,690 crores are males and 2,595 crores are females, comprising of per cent rural population and per cent urban population. The ratio of Females to Males is 965. The density of population is 276 per Sq.km as against the national average of 324. The decadal growth rate of the state is per cent (against 21.54% of the country). The Demographic profile (Table 4.3) of the state shows that average population density is 276, but actual distribution varies widely (2001 Census). Bangalore urban district has highest density at almost 3,000 persons/sq km while Uttara Kannada has lowest density 132 person/sq km. This uneven distribution could be attributed to Urban Push and Pull factors. Literacy rate is of 66.6 per cent. (The Females Literacy rate is per cent and that of Males is per cent) Table 4.3: Area and Population Density of Districts District Sq Km Total Population Density Rank Bangalore Dakshina Kannada Mysore Dharwad Mandya Bangalore(R) Belgaum Kolar Davanagere Haveri Udupi Bidar Hassan

10 Bagalkot Raich Ur Tumkur Bellary Gadag Shimoga Gulbarga Chamaraja Nagar Chitradurga Bijapur Koppal Chikmagalur Kodagu Uttara Kannada State Source: Economic survey Occupational Profile Working Population (both main and marginal workers) details are given in Table 4.5 and it is apparent that average state working population stands at 45 per cent. Bidar and Bangalore districts occupy the lowest position in terms of percentage of population in workers category, while Tumkur and Hassan district have higher percent of working population i.e.51 and 50% respectively. If one were to examine the working population profile of the state, following points emerge Chamaraj Nagar district has highest marginal working population followed by Raichur districts. It is Bangalore district which has highest percentage of non-working population followed by Bidar district. Among the various economic activities, farm based activities, which is directly influenced by climate change/variations emerge as important economic activity as significant 108

11 percentage of population is dependent on this sector. Hassan district, among the districts has highest percentage of cultivators, followed by Mandya district. As expected, Bangalore district has lowest percentage of cultivators (Fig 4.1). 30 Fig 4.1: Percentage of Cultivators across Districts % of Cultivators to Total Ppln Bangalore Bangalore(r) Chitradurga Davanagere Kolar Shimoga Tumkur Chikmagalur Dakshina kannada Udupi Hassan Kodagu Mandya Mysore Chamaraja nagar Belgaum Bijapur Bagalkot Dharwad Gadag Haveri Uttara kannada Bellary Bidar Gulbarga Raichur Koppal (Census: 2001). Similarly, Hassan district supports highest percentage of agricultural labour across the districts followed by Chamraj Nagar district (Fig 4.1). In terms of irrigation, it is Shimoga district which has highest percentage of irrigated area followed by Mandya. 109

12 Fig 4.2: Percentage of Irrigation to Total Crop Area across Districts % of Irri. To Total Crop Area Davanagere Kolar Shimoga Tumkur Chikmagalur Dakshina kannada Udupi Hassan Kodagu Mandya Mysore Chamaraja nagar Belgaum Bijapur Bagalkot Dharwad Gadag Haveri Uttara kannada Bellary Bangalore Bangalore(r) Chitradurga Bidar Gulbarga Raichur Koppal Source: Karnataka@glance Agriculture Karnataka is an agrarian state known worldwide for its production of coffee, raw silk and sandalwood. The state has a 75 per cent share of the total floriculture industry of the country. About 70 per cent of the people of the state live in villages and 71 per cent of the total population is agriculture dependents. 59 per cent of total coffee produced in the country comes from Karnataka. The major crops grown in the state are: rice, ragi, (major producer) jowar, maize, and pulses besides oilseeds and number of cash crops. Cashew, coconut, areca nut, cardamom, chilies, cotton, sugarcane and tobacco are among the other crops produced in the state. The forested area of south Karnataka gives the sandal wood resource to the state. Maize is grown only in the northern tip of the state in Bidar District. 110

13 Coconut and Arecanut is grown in the southern districts. Cotton is grown abundantly in the Gulbarga District. The Davangere District of the state is a center of cotton industry. The weather conditions in coastal areas make cultivation of fruit orchards favourable. Rice is grown mostly in the coastal districts. The state ranks fifth in the country in production of oilseed. The share of agriculture SDP to GSDP is 16.1at factor cost (current prices ) and total food grain production is anticipated at lakh tones for the year against the target of lakh tones and the total food grain production for was Lakh Tones, and the area under food grains is Lakh Hectares in (Table 4.4). Table Area and production of Important Crops in Karnataka ( ). Crops Area Production (Lakh Hec) (Lakh tonnes) Paddy Ragi Jowar Bajra Maize Wheat Total pulses Total Food Grains Sugarcane Cotton * * Lakh Bale Source: Economic Survey , Feb 2009 G.O.K 111

14 Cropping Pattern Cereals occupy a total area of 5.33 million hectare (i.e. nearly 60 percent of net sown area) the major creals being Rice, Jowar, bajra, ragi, maize, and wheat. Pulses occupy an area of 1.51 million hectares comprises of Bengal gram, Red gram, green gram, black gram followed by oil seeds like groundnut and sunflower and also sugar cane and cotton Land Holdings The total land holdings in the state is about 75, 80,873 in number and covering an area of 1, 23, 84,721 hectares. (Karnataka at Glance ). Consumption of fertilizers is given in Table 4.5. Table 4.5: Fertilizer consumption - Karnataka (lakh tones) Year N P K Total (upto Dec08) Source: Dept of Agriculture, G.O.K Table 4.5 gives data relating to fertilizer consumption in Karnataka for the last three years. The fertilizer consumption has increased during compared to the previous year s growth which was almost stagnant, with regard to type of nutrients, N &P increased and K had decreased whereas in 2008 & 2009 all the nutrient consumption had increased. 112

15 4.2 Profile of Bellary District Bellary District spanning an area of 8,450 square kms constituting 4.99 per cent of the total area of the state is located in the central region of the eastern sector of the Karnataka state, which lies between and Northern and and eastern longitudes. Dharwad bound the district in the west to the south by Chitradurga and in the east by Ananthapur and Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh. 97,017 hectares of area is under forest constituting 12 percent of the total geographical area of the district. The famous tourist places of the district are Hampi and Thungabhadra Dam. Demography The total population of Bellary district is 20, 27,140 which is unevenly spread over 7 taluks - Bellary, Hadagali, H.B.halli, Hospet, Kudligi, Sandur and Sirguppa, 27 hoblis, 7 town panchayats, 189 village panchayats and 524 inhabited villages with a composition of 13,20,290 rural population and 7,06,850 urban population and the density of 240 persons per Sq km whereas, sex ratio is 969 females per 1000 men and literacy rate percent. (District Glance ) Topography The district is situated in the northern dry agro-climatic (arid) zone of Karnataka and has sandy and red loamy and eastern portion has deep black. The climate of the district is generally hot and dry in summer, whereas in winter it is very cold and misty i.e., December to February. The temperature ranges from 9-10 C to 35 C during winter. During summer i.e. from March to May temperature 113

16 ranges from 15 C-44 C and is one of the hottest districts in the state. The rainfall is scanty and capricious and the normal rainfall is about 604mm per annum, usually August and September are the months, which receive maximum rainfall. The major river that flows through the district is Thungabadra with tributaries Hagari and Chikka Hagari. Narihalli reservoir has been constructed across Thungabhadra River, in Sandur village, which is used for irrigation purpose. Infrastructure The district has kms of National Highways, 996 kms State Highways of 1031 kms Major District Roads, 33 major bridges and 2,853 kms of rural road length, has also Broad gauge of kms in length, with 27 Railway stations. It also has a well-developed network of Post and Telegraph offices numbering 392 and 2 respectively and there are 101 telephone exchanges with 56,945 telephones. The district also has 1,774 primary schools, 252 high schools, 102 pre-university colleges, 7 polytechnic, 3 engineering colleges, and one medical college. Share in GSDP The share of Bellary Districts in Karnataka s GSDP at Current Prices is 9,33,027 Lakh Rupees with a Net Per capita income of 42,943 Rupees, which is more when compared to states Net Per capita Income of Rs 30,847. The contribution of Bellary to the State GDP ( ) is highest due to Mining and Quarrying activities (Economic Survey , Dept of Eco & Stat, B lore) 114

17 Agriculture Bellary District is one of the developed district of Karnataka, which follows Agriculture as main occupation and the contribution to the GSDP is 2,584 crores and the main crops grown are paddy, jowar, groundnut, cotton, sunflower, and gram. The important source of irrigation is Thungabadhara Canal., out of total geographical area of 8, 13,196 hectares, the total area sown is 5,73,268 hectares and net irrigated area is 41 percent to the net area sown (Table 4.6). Table 4.6: Land Utilization Bellary District (Hectares) Land Classification Area ( Percent) Forest 97,017 (11.90) Land not available for cultivation 1,22,100 (15) other un-cultivated land 33,917 (4.20) Fallow Land 1,09,603 (7.70) Area sown (Net) 4,50,560 (55.41) Sown more than once 1,22,708 (-) Total Area sown 5,73,268 (-) Total 8,13,196 (100) Note: Figures in bracket indicate % to the respective total Source: Bellary District at Glance Table 4.6 gives details pertaining to the pattern of land utilization in Bellary district, nearly 12 per cent of the land comes under the forest followed by land not available for cultivation per cent of the total land is cultivable and total area sown is nearly one fourth of the land, and the irrigation is available to nearly 40 per cent of the cultivated land. 115

18 Table 4.7: Agricultural Land Holdings Bellary District (Ha) Size of Holdings (Hec) Number Area Less than 1 96,121 (36.69) 49,625 (9.05) Between 1 and 2 76,110 (29.05) 108,992 (19.87) Between 2 and 4 55,544 (21.20) 151,654 (27.65) Between 4 and 10 29,829 (11.39) 173,476 (31.63) Over 10 4,347 (1.65) 64,753 (11.08) Total No. of holdings 261,950 (100) 548,500 (100) Note: Figures in bracket indicate % to the respective total Source: Bellary District at Glance The total area operated by different size-classes is shown in table 4.7 where the total operational holding is 5, 48,500 Hectares (ha) is operated by 2, 61,950 holdings. As regards the area operated and number of different size classes of holdings, large size class holdings has the highest percentage of area operated i.e., 31.6 per cent, followed by medium class with 27.6 per cent, small class with 19.8 per cent. Only 9.05 per cent of area belongs to the marginal holdings, although their representation in the total holding is about 36.6 per cent. Though large farmers represent 11.3 per cent but operate 31.6 per cent of the total area operated. The Marginal and Small farmers together constitute 67.7 per cent in the total holdings; but operate only 28.9 per cent of the total area. Irrigation details from different sources in Bellary district are shown in Table 4.8. The main source of irrigation is Tungabhadra canal. Out of 1, 86,074 ha of net area irrigated, 78, 12 a is irrigated by canals alone (42%), followed by bore well (34%) and by other sources (25%). 116

19 Table 4.8: Sources of Irrigation - Bellary District (Ha Sources Area (%) Canals 78,152 (42) Tanks 2,928 (1) Wells 5,482 (3) Bore wells 63,251 (34) Lift Irrigation 32,761 (18) Others 3,500 (2) Total Net Area Irrigated 1,86,074 (100) Note: Figures in bracket indicate % to the respective total Source: Bellary District at Glance Table 4.9 depicts the cropping pattern and area under paddy dominates the total cultivated area followed by groundnut, maize, jowar, gram, cotton and the production of paddy, jowar, groundnut and gram has recorded the highest yield. Table 4.9:Area and Production of Principal Crops -Bellary District ( ) Sl. No Crops Area (Ha) Production (M.Tonnes) 1 Ragi 3,772 1,836 2 Paddy 1,05,922 3,48,073 3 Jowar 55,709 62,116 4 Bajra 17,022 8,918 5 Maize 81,235 1,85,728 6 Total Millets 2,68,570 6,08,249 7 Gram 37,539 17,799 8 Tur 9,353 4,363 9 Groundnut 86,429 21, Cotton 19,167 28,963 (bales) Source: Karnataka at Glance, DIR Economics and Statistics, B lore In terms of plant nutrients, Bellary district uses 1,27,407 Tons of fertilizers and percentage of N to P and K is highest, followed by P and K and per hectare consumption is 165 kgs/ha which is higher than state average consumption of Kg/ha (Table 4.10). 117

20 Table 4.10; Fertilizer Consumption - Bellary District (Tons) N P K Total Consumption (kgs/hec) 71,037 32,904 23,446 1,27, Source: Bellary District at Glance Profile of Gadag District Location: Gadag district was formed on 1 st of November 1997 which was earlier a taluk in Dharwad district, due to administrative reasons it was given a district status. It covers a total area of 4,656 square kms in the Northern region of Karnataka state. And lies between and North latitude and West longitude and it shares boundaries with Koppal district in west and Dharwad district in north and Bagalkot district towards south and Haveri district in east. The district has an area of 32,614 hectares under forest constituting 7.0 percent of the total geographical area of the state. Table 2.28 presents details of the land utilization in Gadag district, about 7 per cent of the area is covered by forest and net sown area is about per cent of total Geographical Area. The net area sown in Gadag District is 1, 65,827 Hectares (Table 4.11). Table 4.11: Land Utilization - Gadag district (Hectares) Land Classification Area Land not available for cultivation 3863 Other un-cultivated land Fallow Land Area sown (Net) Sown more than once Total Area sown Total District at glance

21 Demography The total population is 9,71,835 consisting of 4,93,533 male and 4,78,302 female, rural population of 6,29,652 people, population density is of 209 people per square km, 965 female per 1000 male stretched over 5 taluks - Gadag, Mundaragi, Naragund, Rone, and Shirahatti, 11 hoblis, 9 town panchayats, and 106 village panchayats and literacy rate is at percent. Topography The district temperature is very high as maximum 42 C in summer and minimum of 16 C in the month of January. The district is endowed with deep black soil and sandy red soil and is found scantily. The rainfall is scanty and capricious. The normal rainfall is about 612 mm (2005) per annum; usually August and September are the months, which receive maximum rainfall. The major rivers that flow through the district are Malaprabha and Thungabhadra. Infrastructure The district is well connected with National Highway (45 kms) State Highway (709kms), District Major Roads (558kms) Rural Roads (3081 kms) and 21 bridges. The district has both Broad gauge and Meter Gauge of 47 and 49 kms respectively and 9 Railway stations. The district has a well-developed communication network consists of Post Office and Telephone Exchange offices numbering 171 and 50 respectively with 23,221 telephones. The district has 777 primary schools, 235 high schools, 84 pre-university colleges, 3 Polytechnic colleges and 3 Engineering colleges. Share in GSDP The share of Gadag district in Karnataka s GSDP at Current Prices is 2, 14,701 Lakh Rupees with a net per capita income of 20,613 Rupees, when compared to states net per capita Income of 30,847 Rupees. The Primary sector contribution is lowest in Gadag because of its backwardness. (Economic Survey , Dept of Eco & Stat, B lore) 119

22 Agriculture Gadag is predominantly an agriculture based district and cultivable land is the backbone of its economy. The district covers an area of 4, 65,715 Ha. The average extent of land available per capita is 0.48 ha. According to the latest land utilization statistics, out of the total geographical area per cent is the net area sown. Agriculture contributes about 65.5 percent in the income of the district. The main food crops are Jowar, Wheat, Maize and Pulses while the important commercial crops are Groundnut, Chilies, Onion, and Cotton. The net sown area of 3.53 lakh ha constitutes about percent of the geographical area which is far higher than the state average of 55 percent. The Right Bank Canal of Malaprabha Project which is covering Nargund and Ron taluks of the district at present is expected to be extended which would bring in an additional area about 0.40 lakh ha under irrigation. Of the gross cropped area, Cereals occupy about 39 per cent followed by oil Seeds 34 percent, Pulses 15 per cent, and Commercial crops 12 percent. Gadag contributed substantially to the state s total production of Cotton, Groundnut, Onion and Jowar. Though the productivity has shown a declining trend in the last few years, it is performing better than the state average in terms of production and yield with reference to Pulses, Jowar, Groundnut and Cotton. The major horticultural crops grown in the district are Pomegranate, Chico and Flower. Sericulture activity, though made a beginning, is yet to pick up in the district. 120

23 The small and marginal farmers account for about percent of the total land holdings with percent of the total land. Medium sized (2 to 4) land holdings constitute percent of the total holdings and account for per cent of the land. The large size holdings (above 4 hectares) account for of the holdings and per cent of the land. The average size of operational holdings is 3.24 hectares which is higger than the state average of 2.41 hectares. The sources of irrigation in Gadag district is shown in the above table The maximum area is irrigated by bore wells i.e., 38.3 per cent, followed by Canals accounting per cent and by others accounting per cent. The minor source is by tanks i.e., 0.52 per cent (Table 4.12). Table 4.12: Different Sources of Irrigation - Gadag District (Hectares) Sources Area Canals 22,434 (32.27) Tanks 364(0.52) Wells 747(1.07) Bore wells 26,675(38.38) Lift Irrigation 6,324(9.09) Others 12,964(18.65) Total Net Area Irrigated 69,508(100) Source: Gadag District at Glance The area, production of principal crops is shown in Table Jowar cultivation occupies largest area followed by Groundnut, Gram, cotton, wheat, and maize. The production of maize followed by jowar, groundnut, cotton, gram and wheat are more. 121

24 Table4.13:Area and Production of Principal Crops -Gadag District ( ) Crops Area (Hec) Production ( M.Tones) Jowar 66,272 26,039 Maize 28,211 98,695 Wheat 37,586 21,114 Major Millets 1,37,059 1,52,449 Gram 48,676 13,041 Groundnut 55,845 16,473 Cotton 37,817 17,854 Source: Gadag District at Glance The total Fertilizer consumption in Gadag district ( ) is 27,677 Tonnes, of which nearly 50 per cent constitute N followed by N and K (Table 4.14). Table 4.14: Fertilizers Consumption - Gadag district (Tons) N P K Total Source:Gadag district at glance Section II 4.4: Description of Study Area To study micro level implication of price fluctuations in fertilizer prices and its impacts, two villages in Bellary District and one village in Gadag District were chosen. Details of these selected villages and households are given in following sections. Table 4.15 gives details about number of villages and households selected for the empirical investigation. A sample size of 201 households were drawn from three villages namely Ganikanahal (Irrigated) and Chaganur (Semi-irrigated) in Bellary District and Huilgol (Dry Region) in Gadag 122

25 District of Karnataka. Majority of the households are from chaganur constituting about 37.8 percent followed by Huilgol 32.8 per cent and the least sample households were taken from Ganikanahal for the study. (Criteria for selecting Sample Households are given in Methodology Section). Table 4.15: Number of Villages and Households Selected for the Study District Villages No. of Households Marginal Small Medium Large Big Bellary Ganikanahal Chaganur Gadag Huilgol Total Profile of Bellary Taluk Bellary District has seven Taluks of which Bellary Taluk is largest and one of the important taluk. With a total geographical area of 1,689 Sq Kms. Consisting population of 6,25,494 comprising 3,19,008 Male and 3,06,486 Female with a rural population of 3,08,728 and density of 370, with 961 female per 1000 men. Total Literacy is per cent of which Female Literacy rate is 48 per cent and that of Males are 70 per cent. The Taluk has got 5 Hoblies, 40 Gram Panchayaths, One Town Municipality and has got 63,191 total Cultivators and 80,716 Agricultural Laborers and the normal rainfall it receives is 552 mm. It has a total Geographical Area of 1,69,027 Hectares of land of which the Net Area Sown is 1,01,996 and area sown more than once is 41,874 Hectares and total area sown is 1,43,870 Hectares. A total 73,010 Hectares of land is irrigated out of which 42,

26 is irrigated by canals. And major crops of the taluk are paddy, jowar, maize, gram, sunflower, oilseeds, and cotton. The fertilizers consumption is 29,827 (N) 13,606(P) and 86,139(K) respectively i.e., total of 52,046 tons. Table 4.16: Agricultural Land Holdings - Bellary Taluk (Hectares) Size of land Holdings (Hec) Number Area Less than 1 18,899 (33.03) 10,504 (7.45) Between 1 and 2 15,177 (26.52) 21,718 (15.45) Between 2 and 4 13,099 (22.89) 36,120 (25.62) Between 4 and 10 8,529 (14.91) 50,728 (35.98) Over 10 1,514 (2.64) 22,049 (15.64) Total number of holdings 57,218 (100) 1,40,969 (100) Note: Figures in bracket indicate % to the respective total Source: Bellary District at Glance Table 4.16 shows that land holding by different size classes in Bellary Taluk, is sino no quo to Bellary district, though Marginal and small size class account for nearly 60 percent of the total holdings but operated only per cent of the land. The large farmers who are just per cent operate nearly per cent of the land, which shows that more land is operated by large size class farmers in the Taluk. Plant nutrient consumption details are given in Table Table 4.17: Fertilizers Consumption - Bellary Taluk (Tons) N P K Total Consumption (kgs/hac) 29,827 13,606 8,613 52, Source: Bellary District at Glance The consumption of N compared to P and K is higher. The consumption per hectares is 165kg. two villages from this Taluks were chosen for the study. 124

27 Profile of Ganikanahal Village Bellary Taluk has 99 inhabited villages of which Ganikanahal Village is one among them situated at a distance of 32 kms.from head quarters with a total area of 1,996 hectares of land with a population of 5,479 consisting of 2,737 men and 2,742 women with a total of 975 Households and majority of the population in the village are engaged in agriculture. The village has 1,710 hectares of cultivable land of which irrigated area is 837 hectares, un-irrigated area of 895 hectares and area not cultivable is 264 hectares of land. The sources of irrigation are canals, wells, tube wells, tanks and tanks and crops grown are Paddy, Jowar, Bajra, Maize, Cotton, Pulses, Chicco, and Mango. The village has access to basic infrastructure 2 primary schools, a high school, pre-university college, health center, and family planning center and is visited by a community health worker once in a week. With regard to communication the village has a post office, telephone exchange and bank. There is a regular organized market once in a week. The village has a good frequency of buses and the number of licensed fertilizer shops is three. Social-Economic Profile of the Respondents in Ganikanahal Village The socio-economic details of the respondents were obtained by interviewing the head of the household or in some instances one of the members of the household assisted the respondents to answer the queries. Before eliciting the information pertaining to the objectives of the study, details pertaining to family, education level, caste, land owned, land leased in etc. were collected. The socioeconomic and demographic profile of the respondents is presented below. 125

28 Social Profile Caste is one of the characteristics of the households that specify the social position of the house hold in the village. Distribution of households according to caste and land holding in Ganikanahal Village is shown in Table The caste structure in the village presents dominance of Lingayats, followed by Kurubas in the village, who account for 23.7 per cent and 18.6 per cent respectively, more than one-fourth of the sample farmers belong to SC and people belonging to other religions are small in number constituting 11.9 per cent. There are only two Christians families in the village, and has a Temple and a Mosque. Table 4.18: Distribution of Households according to Caste and Land Holding ( In Acres) 0 < 2.5 (0.0) (23.5) (30.8) (50.0) (33.3) Total 14 (23.7) Source: Survey Landholding Ganikanahal Lingayat Muslim Kuruba SC Valmiki Agasa Akkasali Total 2 (12.5) 1 (5.9) 1 (7.7) 2 (20.0) 1 (33.3) 7 (11.9) 5 (31.3) 3 (17.6) 1 (7.7) 2 (20.0) 0 (0.0) 11 (18.6) 2 (12.5) 4 (23.5) 2 (15.4) 1 (10.0) 0 (0.0) 9 (15.3) 2 (12.5) 4 (23.5) 3 (23.1) 0 (0.0) 1 (33.3) 10 (16.9) 3 (18.8) 1 (5.9) 1 (7.7) 0 (0.0) 0 (0.0) 5 (8.5) 2 (12.5) 0 (0.0) 1 (7.7) 0 (0.0) 0 (0.0) 3 (5.1) 16 (100.0) 17 (100.0) 13 (100.0) 10 (100.0) 3 (100.0) 59 (100.0) Majority of the size class across all the castes are in Category of Small Farmers (Between acres) of land, followed by marginal farmers and it was found that the upper caste i.e., Lingayats and Kurubas have more land holding when compared to other caste and the average size of land holding is two acres.. 126

29 In terms of education level Ganikanahal has a very low level of literacy rate (Table 4.19) that is less than the district average of per cent in spite of its proximity to district head quarters (Bellary) Out of the total sample population of 359 only 123 persons are literates constituting 34.3 per cent of the sample size, among those who are educated the highest proportion of those who have primary school level of education. Only 5.8 per cent of the respondents have completed matriculation education. We hardly find the members of the sample households who have completed higher education. Dropout cases after matriculation are very high due to lack of Pre-university colleges within the proximity and in few cases, they cited economic reasons. It was also found that dropout cases after primary schooling are high in case of girls. The reason being lack of transport and most of the respondents including children are engaged in their own land. Education and knowledge to adopt new technology is limited. Table 4.19: Educational Levels of the Household Members Ganikanahal Educational Level No. of Households Members Primary 50 (13.9) Middle School 45 (12.5) High School 21 (5.8) Pre University 3 (0.8) Degree 2 (0.6) PG 0 (0.0) TCH 0 (0.0) Technical education 2 (0.6) Literacy rate 123 (34.3) Total 359 (100.0) Note: Figures in bracket indicate % to the respective total 127

30 Demographic Profile It was found that with respect to household size the largest proportion of the households have seven members, who are big farmers in the village. The average family size is six, indicating that small families are prevalent. A high proportion of population was found in small farm size., out of 59 households selected for the study, the total population comprised of 364 persons including 162 male and 64 children. It was found that the number of people in small size holdings was large in number, followed by marginal class, medium farm size; big and large (Table 4.20). Table 4.20: Demographic details of the respondents Ganikanahal Village Farm Size No. of Households Male Female Children Total Population Marginal Small Medium Large Big Total Source: Economic Profile Avg Family Size It is clear that (Table 4.21), the main occupation of the respondents in Ganikanahal area is agriculture. Out of 364 respondents, 223 are engaged in cultivation, the reason being that, most of them own land; and practice agriculture since ages representing per cent of the total work force. Occupational distribution across the size classes show that per cent of the farmers belong to large size class, followed by small and marginal agriculture, and in other professions are very minor. 128

31 Table 4.21: Occupational Structure of the Respondents Ganikanahal Village Farm Size No. of Households Total population Agriculture Non Agriculture % of Agriculturists to total population Marginal Small Medium Large Big Total Note: Non-agriculture includes Business, Service, Laundry and Masonry The average size of land holding by all size classes is 1.9 acres. As regards, the total number of operational holdings, the representation of the marginal size class is more, followed by medium and small, who together account for 98 per cent of the total number of holdings. As regard the operated area, maximum land is operated by medium size class, followed by small and marginal farm size. It is evident that though marginal farmers represent maximum in number (42.08) but the proportion of operated area is per cent of the total area. The medium farmers who constitute per cent have accessed to 60 per cent of total operated area (Table 4.22). Table4.22: Size of Landholdings of different Class-Ganikanhal Village (acres) Size of Holdings Number Area Less than (42.38) 180 (11.68) Between 1 and (26.12) 299 (19.40) Between 2 and (30.08) 917 (59.51) Between 4 and (1.41) 145 ( 9.41) Total number of holdings: 781 (100) 1,541 (100) Note: Figures in bracket indicate % to the respective total 129

32 The pattern of tenancy system followed across size-classes in Ganikanahal Village may be seen in table It is clear that wholly owned and self operated land holdings are around 80 per cent across all size classes. The leased-in were the highest in case of big farmers, followed by large size class, whereas as marginal size class have leased out land and none of the sample farmers across other size class have leased out their land. It was found in the village that big farmers have leased in more land and farmers have leased in those lands, adjacent to their land where cultivation and management is easier. The total area operated by all respondents is about 431 acres in Ganikanahal Village. It was noticed in the village that farmers due to poverty and less access to irrigation have leased out their land and are mostly agricultural laborers. Usually rich farmers lease in or engage small and marginal farmers to work in their field and pay them in kind. Table 4.23: Tenancy of Operational Holdings Ganikanahal Village (Acres) Size-class Total land owned Land leased in Land leased out Total land operated Cultivable Waste Marginal Small Medium Large Big Total Source: Bellarydistrict@glance Table 4.24 gives the details of cropping pattern and it is clear that cultivation of paddy dominates over other crops. (Nearly 70% of the total cultivated land) like jowar, bajra and major commercial crops like cotton and groundnut. 130

33 Table 4.24: Area under Main Crops Ganikanahal Village (Acres) Crops Area Jowar 20 Paddy 600 Bajra 15 Maize 31 Cotton 80 Ground Nut 30 Pulses 15 Source: The details of source wise irrigation for different size classes are illustrated in the Table In Ganikanahal the maximum proportion of irrigated land receives irrigation from canals (88.32%) followed by tube wells (82.13%) and the remaining by tanks. Out of 432 acres of which 310 acres of land are irrigated that is nearly 75 per cent and all size class holdings have maximum access to canal irrigation. Table 4.25: Sources of Irrigation Ganikanahal Village (Acres) Size Class Canals Wells Tube well Tanks Others Total Irrigated < (82.83) () (13.13) (4.04) () (10) (94.39) () (5.61) () () (10) (73.18) () (16.09) (10.73) () (10) (95.96) () (4.04) () () (10) (10) () () () () (10) Total (88.32) () (8.13) (3.54) () (10) Note: Figures in bracket indicate % to the respective total 131

34 Profile of Chaganur Village Chaganur is another important village in Bellary Taluk, with a total geographical area of 1,917 hectares situated on Bellary road at a distance of 16 kms from Bellary town. According to the Census Report of 2001, it has a total population of 3,033 consisting of 1,544 men and women 1,489 population while majority of the population in the village are engaged in agriculture and the total number of households is 523. People belonging to various communities reside in this village Reddy s, kurubas, Lingayats are in majority while the other caste groups includes Valmikis, Scheduled caste, Agasas, Goldsmiths. The village has fairly good infrastructure, access to drinking water, bank, Post office, health center, primary school, high school and pre-university college. A good frequency of buses mostly private transport service connects the village to Bellary Town. It has a total cultivable area of 1,821 hectares; total area irrigated is of 1,622 hectares of land and cultivable waste of hectares. Canal is the main source of irrigation, nearly 90 per cent of irrigation is met by canal water others minor sources are from wells, tube wells, tanks, taps etc. The crops grown are, paddy, rice, jowar, bajra, maize, groundnut, cotton, pulses, chico, mango etc. There is a regular organized shandy (market) held on every Thursday. And has only one fertilizers shop. Social Profile Caste and size class wise details in Chaganur village are shown in Table 4.26 according to which people belonging to various communities reside in this village. Valminis, Kurubas, and Reddys are majority, while the other caste groups like 132

35 chettys, gold smiths, Muslims, scheduled caste and scheduled tribes are minor in number. The small size class farmers are found more in number across all caste followed by medium and marginal and lease number is found in big size class, which is dominated by Upper caste. Table 4.26: Distribution of Households according to Caste and landholding Chaganur Village Size Class Reddy Muslim Kuruba SC Valmiki Artisans Total < (0.0) 4 (25.0) 2 (12.5) 4 (25.0) 3 (18.8) (22.2) (11.1) (5.6) (16.7) (16.7) (18.8) (18.8) (12.5) (6.3) (25.0) (16.7) (16.7) (25.0) (0.0) (25.0) (33.3) (0.0) (33.3) (0.0) (11.1) > (20.0) (0.0) (60.0) (0.0) (20.0) Total (17.1) (14.5) (18.4) (10.5) (19.7) Note: Figures in bracket indicate % to the respective total 3 (18.8) 5 (27.8) 3 (18.8) 2 (16.7) 2 (22.2) 0 (0.0) 15 (19.7) 16 (100.0) 18 (100.0) 16 (100.0) 12 (100.0) 9 (100.0) 5 (100.0) 76 (100.0) In respect of education level of the households the data presents, majority of the respondents had only middle school education. ( Table 4.27) and it can be observed that there were more dropouts at high school level, the reason being non availability of agriculture laborers. Hence, they work in their own fields, 45 people know to read and write kannada, and majority of the respondents have completed their primary schooling followed by middle school education and the number of respondents into higher education is negligible. 133

36 Table 4.27: Educational level of the household members Chaganur Village Educational Level No. of Persons Primary 101 (20.3) Middle School 80 (16.1) High School 46 (9.2) Pre University 1 (0.2) Degree 1 (0.2) PG 1 (0.2) TCH 0 (0.0) Technical education 0 (0.0) Literate rate 230 (46.2) Total 498 (100.0) Note: Figures in bracket indicate % to the respective total Demographic Profile Agriculture is the main occupation of sample households in the village, about 65 per cent of the respondents are engaged agriculture, and 25 per cent of the households supplement their income by working as agricultural laborers. Only two persons are engaged in government service and we find sample farmers involved in non-agricultural pursuits like blacksmith, barber, washer man, traders etc. Large farmers are not only into cultivation but also perform money lending and also act as middlemen by purchasing the produce of the small and marginal farmers. It also reveals that the small size class of farmers is more in number, followed by medium and marginal class in the village. Out of 76 households under study the average family size is 7. Total population of the households is 515 of which 230 are male, 188 female and 97 children. Except in very big size class group we find 134

37 demographic details more or less similar across other size classes. It was also found that in spite of living under one roof, the land is divided among all male children (Table 4.28). Table 4.28: Demographic details of the sample farmers Chaganur Village Farm Size No. of House-holds Male Female Children Total Population Avg Family Size Marginal Small Medium Large Big Very big Total Source: Economic Profile Table 4.29, gives an insight into the occupational details of the sample farmers. Out of 76 households, 338 persons constitute working population out of which 332 persons pursue agriculture as their main occupation and nearly 65 per cent of the population of the households is farmers. Percentage of marginal and big farmers is more into agriculture. As agriculture is more remunerative due to availability of irrigation facilities more number of families are into it, and few of them pursue agriculture along with their traditional occupation --Barbers, Gold smith, Agasa 135