EXPLANATORY NOTES

A. Terms Used In the Publication

 Geographical Area:  The latest figure of geographical area for the State/Union Territory/Districts furnished by the Office of the Surveyor General of India’s data.

 Reporting Area for Land Utilisation Statistics :  The  Reporting area stands for the area for which data on land use classification of area are available.  In areas where land utilization figures are based on land records, reporting  area is the area according to village papers, i.e. the papers prepared by the village accountants. In some cases, the village papers may not be maintained in respect of the entire area of the State.   For example, village papers are not prepared for forest areas but the magnitude of such area is known, also there are tracts in many states for which no village paper exists but, for which ad-hoc estimates of classification of area etc. framed to complete the coverage.

 Forests  :  This includes all lands classed as forest under any legal enactment dealing with forests or administered as forests, whether state-owned or private, and whether wooded or maintained as potential forest land.  The area of crops raised in the forest and grazing lands or areas open for grazing within the forests remain included under the forest area.

 Area under Non-agricultural Uses :  This includes all lands occupied by buildings, roads and railways or under water, e.g. rivers and canals and other lands put to uses other than agriculture.

 Barren and Un-culturable Land :  This includes all barren and unculturable land like mountains, deserts, etc.  Land which cannot be brought under cultivation except at an exorbitant cost, should be classed as unculturable whether such land is in isolated blocks or within cultivated holdings.

Permanent Pastures and other Grazing Lands: This  includes all grazing lands whether they are permanent pastures and meadows or not.  Village common grazing land  is included under this head.

 Land under Miscellaneous Tree Crops, etc. :  This includes all  cultivable land which is not included in ‘Net area sown’ but is put to some agricultural uses.   Lands under Casuring trees, thatching grasses, bamboo bushes and other groves for fuel, etc. which are not included under ‘Orchards’ are classed under this category.

Culturable Waste Land: This includes  lands available for cultivation, whether not taken up for cultivation or taken up for cultivation once but not cultivated during the current year  and the last five years or more in succession for one reason or  other .  Such lands may be either fallow or covered with shrubs and jungles which are not put to any use.  They may be assessed or unassessed and may lie in isolated blocks or within cultivated holdings.   Land once cultivated but not cultivated for five years in succession is also  included in this category at the end of the five years.

 Fallow Lands other than Current Fallows :  This  includes all lands which were taken up for  cultivation but are temporarily out of  cultivation for a period of not less than one year and not more than five years. 

Current Fallows: This represents cropped area which are kept fallow during the current year.  For example, if any seeding area is not cropped against the same year it may be treated as current fallow.

Net Area Sown:   This represents the total area sown with crops and orchards.  Area sown more than once; in the same year is counted only once.

Total Cropped Area:  This represents the total area covered with crops, i.e. the sum total of areas covered by all the individual crops; areas sown with crops more than once during the year being counted as separate areas for each crop.

Area Sown more than once:   This is obtained by deducting ‘Net Area Sown’ from ‘Total Cropped Area’.

B. DEFINITION OF SOME COMMONLY USED TERMS

Total Cultivable Area: This consists of net area sown, current fallows, fallow lands other than current fallows, culturable waste  and land under miscellaneous tree crops.

Total  Cultivated Area: This consists of net area   sown and  current fallows.

Agriculture Land/Total Culturable Land: Same as cultivable  area.

C. ESTIMATION  PROCEDURE FOR MISSING  INFORMATION