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economics of on-farm development - Institute for Social and ...

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een brought out by<br />

many scholars in different agro-c1imatic regI<strong>on</strong>s<br />

(Vaidyanathan, 1987; Ray, 1991; Dhawan, 1992; Vaidyanathan et a!.. 1994).<br />

Based <strong>on</strong> the source-wise ratio <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> net irrigated to net sown area across the major<br />

states in India. Vaidyanathan (1999) finds that the coefficient <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> variati<strong>on</strong> (CV)<br />

has fallen from 77 per cent in the early 1960s to 54 per cent in the late 1980s.<br />

This reducti<strong>on</strong> in regi<strong>on</strong>al disparities has been largely due to a more even spread<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> canal irrigati<strong>on</strong> stimulated by public investment.<br />

The FAO study shows that the well-endowed green revoluti<strong>on</strong> areas (in<br />

terms <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> good soils <strong>and</strong> assured irrigati<strong>on</strong>) have experienced tremendous decline<br />

in poverty levels owing to c<strong>on</strong>sistent agricultural growth. The elasticity <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

cropping intensity with respect to irrigati<strong>on</strong> has been around 0.3 <strong>and</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> l<strong>and</strong><br />

productivity with respect to irrigati<strong>on</strong> has been above 0.5 (FAO. 1993. as cited<br />

in Alagh. 200 I)<br />

However, the impact <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> spatial <strong>and</strong> temporal variati<strong>on</strong>s in rainfall, spread<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> irrigati<strong>on</strong> <strong>and</strong> its quality <strong>and</strong> fertiliser <strong>on</strong> productivity <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> crops estimated<br />

through multiple regressI<strong>on</strong> analysis by some <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the scholars. has not been<br />

c<strong>on</strong>clusive <strong>and</strong> c<strong>on</strong>vincing (Mukherjee <strong>and</strong> Vaidyanathan. 1988; Vaidyanathan et<br />

(1/ (1994). This is mainly because <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the estimated coefficients not showing any<br />

pattern owing to the infirmities in irrigati<strong>on</strong> statistics. This shows the inadequacy<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> data available <strong>for</strong> reliable estimates <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> irrigati<strong>on</strong> impact. Moreover. the<br />

multiple regressi<strong>on</strong> models implicitly assume linear additive relati<strong>on</strong>s between<br />

input <strong>and</strong> output. which is unrealistic in view <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the complex. n<strong>on</strong>-linear <strong>and</strong><br />

interactive relati<strong>on</strong>ship between variables (Vaidyanathan. 1999:80).<br />

38

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