~ 326 ~ Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry 2020; 9(2): 326-329 E-ISSN: 2278-4136 P-ISSN: 2349-8234 www.phytojournal.com JPP 2020; 9(2): 326-329 Received: 16-01-2020 Accepted: 18-02-2020 Rashmi Department of Agricultural Economics, Institute of Agricultural Sciences, BHU, Varanasi, Uttar, Pradesh, India MS Pathania Department of Agricultural Economics, Extension Education and Rural Sociology CSKHPKV Palampur, Himachal Pradesh, India Diksha Sethi Department of Agricultural Economics, Extension Education and Rural Sociology CSKHPKV Palampur, Himachal Pradesh, India HP Singh Department of Agricultural Economics, Institute of Agricultural Sciences, BHU, Varanasi, Uttar, Pradesh, India Corresponding Author: Rashmi Department of Agricultural Economics, Institute of Agricultural Sciences, BHU, Varanasi, Uttar, Pradesh, India Diversification towards vegetable farming in Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh Rashmi, MS Pathania, Diksha Sethi and HP Singh Abstract In Himachal Pradesh, agriculture is a very crucial part of the state’s economy as it is the main occupation of people. The area under vegetable crops has witnessed rapid increase in recent years. High- value crops like vegetables can potentially increase farmer’s income as demand for high-value food products is increasing more quickly than that of the cereal crops. The present study deals with growth performance of major crops examined in Kangra District and Nagrota Bagwan block of Himachal Pradesh. Growth was analysed in terms of compound annual growth rate in area, production and productivity of major crops, which was carried out for the period 2007-08 to 2016-17. The study revealed that there has been an increase in area and production of vegetables in Kangra District and Nagrota Bagwan block. Per cent change in area of Nagrota Bagwan block and Kangra district were estimated over the period. A negative change in area was noted in crops except vegetable. The per cent increase in vegetable area over 2007-08 during 2016-17 was 176 and 223 per cent, respectively. Highest positive per cent change in production was estimated in vegetables over time. Per cent change in productivity for different crops of Nagrota Bagwan block showed an increasing trend for pulses and vegetable crops. There was no definite trend observed in wheat, maize and paddy. Keywords: Towards vegetable farming, Kangra, agriculture Introduction Horticulture has been one of the fastest growing sectors within the larger agriculture activities and one of the driving forces of overall agricultural development in India. Horticulture sector encompasses a wide range of crops, for example, fruit crops, vegetable crops, potato and tuber crops, ornamental crops, medicinal and aromatic crops, spices and plantation crops. With the growth of urbanization, modernization, and increase in disposable income of the individuals, food consumption pattern gets changed greatly, shifted proportionately more toward the non- cereal crops [3] . As a result, in the recent past, change in cropping pattern from conventional/traditional to high-value cash crops has also been experienced in the Indian agriculture4 and at the same time, farmers are attracted by the higher market prices of the high- value cash crops. Also, growth of the horticulture sectors is not only enthused by the domestic needs but also by a large quantity of export requirements [4, 5] . The analysis of the performance of major crop groups since early 1970’s shows that the value productivity of traditional crops in Himachal Pradesh has either declined or is stagnated. As a result the agricultural sector has recently failed to meet the requirements of the State. Productivity rates of crops, particularly, food crops, are low and possess little growth potential. On the contrary, the State has made tremendous progress in agriculture through fruits, vegetables and off-season vegetables cultivation. Vegetables have always been a better choice of crop diversification because of good productivity and much higher returns compared to cereals. It provides regular as well as good source of income. Vegetables also support many other industries like processing, seed industry, fertilizer, pesticide and farm machinery industry. The important vegetables produced in the state are tomatoes, cauliflower, cabbage, brinjal, okra, potato, radish, turnip, onion, carrot, peas, etc. In Himachal Pradesh, the area under vegetable cultivation has increased from 34 thousand hectares during 2001-02 to about 76 thousand hectares in 2015-16 with an increase of 8.4 per cent per annum. The annual production increased from 6.27 lakh tonnes in the year 2001-02 to 16 lakh tones in the year 2015-16. The vegetable productivity of the state is 19.5 tonnes per hectare, which is higher than the national productivity of 17.5 tonnes per hectare during 2015-16. The major challenge in future to increase vegetable production and productivity is to develop technology. Efforts are also being made by state government to diversify cropping pattern to encourage vegetable cultivation in non-traditional areas. This will also enhance vegetable production.