Spatio-Temporal Characteristics of Agricultural Drought

Spatial and temporal characteristics of agricultural drought of Barind region have been analyzed. Markov chain model has been used to evaluate probabilities of getting a sequence of wetdry weeks over this region. Different statistical approaches were used to investigate the missing rainfall data series. GIS software Arc GIS version 9.2 was used to map the spatial extent of agricultural drought of different severities in different agricultural seasons. Probability of three consecutive dry weeks and probability of at least 8, 10 and 12 wet weeks were also calculated to find out the suitability of the regions for agricultural production. These study results could be useful to agricultural planners and irrigation engineers in identifying the areas where agricultural development should be focused as a long-term drought mitigation strategy.