Resource analysis of a selected district for integrated development: GIS Approach

Abstract

Resource potential of a region plays a vital role in planning and development of that region. An inventory of all the resources available will come in handy for the planners for preparing a road map for development. The spatial and temporal variations in the resource base call for region specific database of various resources, so that the developmental plans can have a firm footing on reliable information. In India district is treated as basic unit for planning at national level. For preparing growth oriented developmental plans at national level an integrated analysis of all the available resources in the district vis-à-vis water resources available is very much essential. In the present study Kurnool district in Andhra Pradesh has been selected for preparing a comprehensive inventory of all the resources available in the district and an attempt has been made to analyze the resource potential for preparing developmental plans for the district. An inventory of all the resources of Kurnool district has been prepared in .CSV format for using the data base in ArcGIS for the purpose of retrieval, analysis and so on. newlineKurnool district is located in Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh state. The district ranks 10th in population with 35,29,494 people accounting for 4.63% of the total population of the State as per 2001 population census. It occupies 3rd place in area with 17658 sq.km which accounts for 6.41% of the total area of the State. Kurnool district comprises of three revenue divisions, 54 revenue mandals, 53 mandal parishads, one municipal corporation, 4 municipalities, 898 gram panchayats, 926 villages and 647 hamlets. Since water is a critical resource for development of other resources the assessment of water resources available and demand for water for various purposes i.e. agriculture, domestic and industrial use, is of utmost importance without which it is difficult to prepare any developmental plan. The normal rainfall of Kurnool district is 670 mm per annum.