International Journal of Food, Agriculture and Veterinary Sciences ISSN: 2277-209X (Online) An Online International Journal Available at http://www.cibtech.org/jfav.htm 2012 Vol. 2 (2) May-July, pp.97-105/Pal and Kar Research Article 97 IMPLICATIONS OF THE METHODS OF AGRICULTURAL DIVERSIFICATION IN REFERENCE WITH MALDA DISTRICT: DRAWBACK AND RATIONALE Swades Pal 1 and *Shyamal Kar 2 1 Department of Geography, University of Gour Banga, Malda, West Bengal 2 Department of Geography, Visva-Bharati, Santiniketan *Author for Correspondence ABSTRACT This paper aims to implement different measures of crop diversification for a uniform data set of Malda district. At the same time it focuses on status and changing pattern of crop diversification in different blocks of Malda district with a comparative outlook of District and State level status. Herfindahl index and Simpson index are widely used measures of crop diversification but as per the output scale of resolution, Gini‟s Coefficient and Entropy Measures are to be considered as better. As per the way of calculation Entropy index, Modified entropy index and Ogive index are more effective. District level status is far ahead the state level and blocks level status good. Monotonization in crop diversification is going on which is reflected through forward and backward shifting crop diversification into a single class in between 2001 to 2008. Peasants are still addicted with cereals instead of high value crops. Key Words: Methods of Diversifications, Problems and Justification, Horizontal Diversification, Vertical Diversification INTRODUCTION Crop diversification in the Third World Countries like India is a pungent applied concept to remove the plight of subsistence agricultural economy and to ensure diversified nutrition status of the poor countrymen. Crop diversification means raising of a variety of crops involving intensity of competition amongst field crops for arable or cultivable land. “The keener the competition, the higher the magnitude of the crop diversification and lesser the competition the greater will the trend toward specialization or monoculture farming where emphasis is on one or two crops” (Jasbir Singh 1976). The main advantage of the study of diversification in a region lies in the fact that it enables us to understand the impact of physical and socio-economic conditions on the agriculture. Moreover, it helps us in knowing the contemporary competition among crop for area, for rotation and effect on double cropping, total production and per hectare productivity (Bhalsing, 2009). Indian agriculture is predominantly a small peasant based economy with approximately 80% of the operational holdings being below two hectares, and 34% of the agricultural land are cultivated by them (GOI, 1997). Because of small operational holdings, it is indeed very difficult by the small farmers to improve their earnings only by raising the yields of the existing crops, mainly cereals. Attention on high value crops with available modern farm inputs may provide a stable economic base of the poor peasants (De and Chattopadhyay, 2010). The incidence of crop diversification in India, however, was very uncommon particularly before the introduction of new agricultural technology in the mid-sixties. With the advent of new agricultural technology particularly, water seed- fertilizer technology, a significant change in land allocation towards some high value cash crops such as fruits and vegetables cultivated particularly by the small farmers is observed in India (Joshi et al., 2006). In West Bengal also, high value crops like potato, summer paddy and mustard have got high priority among the small farmers (De, 2000). In contrary of this result, technology in shape of ground water based irrigation facilities in some districts like, Nadia, Murshidabad, Burdwan etc. have ensured more crop concentration. Most of the cases selection of crop is mainly boro paddy crop (Pal, 2010).