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INTRODUCTION TO
MAHARASHTRA
Formed in 1960, combining districts from the erstwhile
Bombay province, Nizam’s dominions and Central
Provinces and Berar, during the linguistic
reorganization of the states in India
Presentation by S.J. Phansalkar
MAP OF MAHARASHTRA
• Area - 307 thousand sq km
• Population (excl. Mumbai) 85 million
• Rural population 69%
• # BPL (rural) 23% on new definition (it was 43% in 1997
on the basis of poverty line = Rs. 49 at 1973 prices)
• Average monthly per capita consumption expenditure
(rural) equivalent to Rs. 171 (1988 prices), which is
below the average for India
Av. land holding
2 ha
% irrigated area
13%
Irrigation by source:
Canals
22%
Tanks
14%
Ground water
56%
Others
6%
Three zones of Maharashtra
FEATURES OF ALL REGIONS
KONKAN
Attributes
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High rainfall
UHM
Highly industrialized
Lateritic soils
Acute water problem in dry seasons
Highly denuded
Crops: field crops are rice and inferior millets
Coastal horticulture: alphanso, cashew, sapota etc. Horticulture in the
hands of large, often absentee landlords from Gujarat and Mumbai
• High urbanization around Greater Mumbai
• Tribal people: Katkari, Thakarada and Mahadeo kolis in the hills
DESH
Western and Central Maharashtra districts
• Rainshadow region, low rainfall, less
than 700 mm
• Intensely cultivated
• Surface irrigated
• Ground water sources vanished
• Field crops: sugarcane, sorghum,
soyabean, sunflower, safflower,
pigeon pea, cotton
• Horticulture crops grown in pockets
PUNE, NASHIK, SANGLI, JALGAON
• Crops include vegetables:
tomato, onion, full range of
vegetables
• Fruits Grape
Pomegranate
Strawberry
Banana
• Soils are loamy to clay loam
• UHM in Western parts, flat in
the rest
• High degree of poverty
• Communities: caste Hindu,
special horticultural
communities of malis
VIDHARBHA
• High rainfall, predictable monsoon, average rain above
800-900 mm
• Main crops: cotton, pigeon pea, soyabean, sorghum.
Rice in the Eastern district
• Low irrigation level
• Largely ground water based
• Very poor proportion in second crops
• Horticultural crop: mandarine, orange (show Northern
regions of Amrawati and Nagpur districts)
• Ground water levels fast receding in orange belt
• Acute poverty
• Politics of cotton
PROJECT AREA
Twelve project districts
Within these, there are different focus areas:
Pomegranate
Nasik and Solapur
Banana:
Jalgaon and Dhule
Vegetables:
Aurangabad, Jalna, Ahmednagar
Orange:
Amrawati
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Highly ground water stressed regions
Expensive conventional drip systems also very popular
Subsidy scheme on drip systems
Large marketing network in Central Maharashtra for drip
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