Identification of Factors Responsible for Shifts in Cropping Pattern

The present study was purposively conducted in Khed tehsil of Pune district. Considering the impact of industrialization, 15 villages and 150 respondents from western and southern part of Khed tehsil were purposively selected. The results of the study revealed that physical, biological, resource related, and economic factors had dominant role in change in cropping pattern. Among physical factors almost (92.67 per cent) of the respondents stated that change in the crops is due to “variation in temperature and humidity” and “change in rainfall pattern”. Majority of the respondents (96.67 per cent) changed the crops due to resource related factors such as "more irrigation requirement. Among biological factors almost (88.67 per cent) of the respondents changed the crops because of “reduced yield due to pest and disease attack” followed by “more pest and disease incidence” (86.67 per cent). Among social factors the majority of respondents (90.00 per cent) changed crop due to market price. Most farmers (71.33 per cent) changed cropping pattern due to legislative and administrative policies, followed by price maximization of MSP and FRP (52.00 per cent). Amongst all the factors under study, biological factors (87.67 per cent) ranked first while physical factors (73.07 per cent) ranked second as the main reasons for shifts in cropping pattern.