BHAVANI DEVI, I.RAMYA LAKSHMI, S. B2016-06-012016-06-012011http://krishikosh.egranth.ac.in/handle/1/66571The present study entitled “Crop Shifts in Coastal Region of Andhra Pradesh – An Economic Analysis,” was undertaken to study the growth rates of area, production and productivity of major crops, direction of cropping pattern changes, factors influencing the cropping pattern changes in the selected districts of Coastal Andhra region. The study was conducted in two districts of Coastal Andhra region namely Vizianagaram and Prakasam. Data required for the study was collected from various published and unpublished sources. The data covered a period of 28 years commencing from 1981-82 to 2008-09. In Vizianagaram district, jowar, bajra, ragi, small millets, bengalgram, recorded significant negative area growth. On the other hand, crops like maize, redgram, blackgram, greengram, sugarcane and sesamum were found associated with positive significant growth of area. Area under paddy declined at an annual rate of 0.20 per cent but it was non-significant. Among the foodgrains, bengalgram recorded the highest growth rate of productivity (3.80 per cent). In Prakasam district, area growth rate was the highest for bengalgram followed by maize and sunflower. Productivity growth rate was the highest in bengalgram (3.10 per cent) followed by chillies (2.04 per cent). In Vizianagaram district, groundnut which retained a relatively higher proportion of its area in period I was highly unstable in period II. Greengram was the next crop to groundnut in period I which exhibited retention levels of xii its own area, but in period II it had a zero degree of retention. In the case of mesta, the retention probability of its own area has increased to a little extent to 0.3288 in period II from 0.3154 in period I. Paddy one of the major crops in the district did not retain much of its area in the second period as observed in the period I. Horsegram and sesamum remained as the most unstable crops in both the periods. Other crops ability to retain their own area was very less in period I but was moderate in period II. In Prakasam district in period I, bengalgram and cotton were the only unstable crops, but in period II, Jowar, cotton, redgram and tobacco remained as unstable crops. Cotton in both the periods was unstable. In Vizianagaram district area under paddy, greengram, groundnut, mesta, sugarcane and sesamum were significantly influenced by their own lagged prices. Rainfall significantly influenced the area under blackgram and groundnut only. Gross irrigated area exerted non-significant influence on paddy and sugarcane acreage. In Prakasam district area under paddy, redgram, bengalgram, chilly and tobacco were positively influenced by their own lagged prices. Increase in gross irrigated area had a significant positive influence on the area under paddy.encrops, area, productivity, biological development, rice, marketing, cotton, economics, groundnuts, cropping patternsANDHRA PRADESH, ECONOMIC ANALYSISThesis