~ 1055 ~ International Journal of Chemical Studies 2020; 8(1): 1055-1059 P-ISSN: 2349–8528 E-ISSN: 2321–4902 IJCS 2020; 8(1): 1055-1059 © 2020 IJCS Received: 16-11-2019 Accepted: 20-12-2019 S Sanbagavalli Associate Professor, Department of Agronomy, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India SV Shakila Devi Ph.D. Scholar, Department of Agronomy, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India S Marimuthu Assistant Professor, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu, India Corresponding Author: S Sanbagavalli Associate Professor, Department of Agronomy, TNAU, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India Identification of efficient cropping zone for major pulse crops in Tamil Nadu S Sanbagavalli, SV Shakila Devi and S Marimuthu DOI: https://doi.org/10.22271/chemi.2020.v8.i1n.8392 Abstract An analytical study was carried over to identify the efficient cropping zone for cultivation of major pulses like Bengalgram, Pigeon pea, Greengram, Blackgram and Horsegram in Tamil Nadu. The data on area, production and productivity of the crops for the period from 1985-86 to 2015-16 (excluding 2014- 15) were collected and analysed for their Relative Yield Index (RYI), Relative Spread Index (RSI).Based on the pooled result of the indices for thirty years the efficient cropping zones for the crops were identified. Cuddalore district for Blackgram, Salem, Virudhunagar and Tirunelveli districts for Greengram, Salem, Dharmapuri and Theni districts for Redgram, Coimbatore district for Bengalgram, Salem, Dharmapuri and Dindigul districts for Horsegram were identified as the most efficient cropping zones for the respective pulse crops. Keywords: Efficient cropping zone, relative yield index, relative spread index, Tamil Nadu, pulse crops Introduction In India variety of pulse crops are cultivated, among which the major pulses are Bengalgram, Pigeon pea, Greengram and Blackgram. Pulses are consumed for its source of plant protein, which contains various amino acids. Although this crop group is more important from the nutritional point of view, there has been no significant increase in area and production from 1950-51 to 2009-10; however, significant growth in area and production has been recorded during 2010-2011 to 2014-15. In order to meet the projected demand of 32 million tonnes of pulses by 2030, as per the Vision 2030 paper prepared by the Indian Institute of Pulses Research, Kanpur, a growth rate of 4.2% has to be ensured (Tiwari and Shivhare, 2016). For both large and small farmers, pulses represent important economic opportunities to boost income and reduce risk by diversifying their crop and income stream portfolio. Pulses may also be produced with minimal resources; this production rate can be enhanced and sustained by recognising the efficient cropping zones for the crop production. Cultivating proficient crops in a suitable area increases the production rate in addition fetches more income. Scientific information based crop cultivation for a region are not stable over years, thus the suitability must be verified frequently. Statistical analysis of spatial and temporal crop data is an effective tool in understanding the logic behind existing cropping pattern. One among the technique for defining the suitable crop region is to study relative yield and relative spread of each crop on district and regional basis. Hence, with these ideas in view, this study was planned to find out district wise efficient cropping zones for major pulse crops. Materials and Method The study was carried out over Tamil Nadu, India to delineate efficient cropping zone for major pulse crops. The data on area, production, productivity and total cultivable areaof the Bengalgram, Redgram, Greengram, Blackgram and Horsegram were collected for the period from 1985-86 to 2015-16 (excluding 2014-15) from respective Season and Crop Report. Relative Yield Index and Relative Spread Index (Kanwar, 1972) [2] were computed for five years once from the collected data. The formula for deriving RSI and RYI are: RSI = Area of particular crop expressed as % of total cultivaable area in the district Area of crop expressed as percentaage to the total cultivable area in the State x 100