Impact of Tejpura watershed project on crop and livestock production

Abstract

The study was conducted to assess impact of the Tejpura watershed project in the village Tejpura-Ghurat in Bangra Block of Jhansi district of Uttar Pradesh. The random sample of 96 farmers households were selected and interviewed with the help of well structured schedule and focused PRA including transect walk. The data had been compared with sample survey of the year 1991. The gross cropped area had increased by 264.82 per cent. The over all cropping intensity showed a marginal increase (0.34 per cent). The irrigated area and cultivated area had increased in all categories of farmers. The area under pulses, fodder crops and vegetables also increased, while the area under cereals and oilseeds showed a decrease. With regards to number of livestock across the sample households, the maximum decrease was observed in medium farmers and minimum large farmers. In medium and large farmer’s categories, the percentage decline in livestock was 24.20 and 12.47 per cent respectively. The supply elasticity of mustard (1.32), black gram (1.40), lentil (4.29) and pea (107.03) showed that their supply is elastic. Supply elasticity of other commodities showed values less than unity or were inelastic. Positive values for producer’s surplus were observed in wheat, barley, black gram, lentil and mustard while the values obtained for consumer’s surplus showed that the consumers were the major beneficiaries of the total economic gains. Higher economic gains were obtained for (descending order) bread wheat, black gram, durum wheat, gram and sorghum and higher economic loss was observed in pigeonpea and pea.