Agro-Economist

Individuals and societies rely heavily on the land for economic activity. The utilisation of land is complex and a constantly changing process. Divisive issues and planning must be formed on a thorough understanding of such processes. In this context, we intend to investigate (i) the spectral shifts in different land classes; and (ii) land-use growth and instability. The research took place in Rajasthan, which was purposefully selected and centred on a dataset spanning the years (2000-01 to 2017-18). The outcome of the land study found that the percent share of forest, non-agriculture uses, tree crops and groves, and area sown increased in first two decades of twenty-first century, while the percent share of barren and unculturable, permanent grazing, culturable waste, and fallow lands decreased. The results of compound growth rate analysis revealed that forest, tree crops and groves, and area sown all grew significantly and positively. Barren and uncultivated land, permanent pasture, culturable waste, old fallow, and current fallow land, on the other hand, witnessed significantly negative growth. Massive areas of land were converted from A and E sectors to the NA sector, which would be a matter of concern for decision-makers and policy-makers in the coming years. In order to accommodate the increasing demand for rapid urbanisation and industrialization, this issue of conversion of non-agricultural purposes can be resolved by using land area vertical direction rather than parallel to the ground. Better land policies must be enacted to prevent the shifting pattern in land.