Question

What are the different types of environmental problems of land resources in India?

Answer 1

Land resources in India are faced with multiple issues that lead to a decline in their productivity. The causes are both environmental and related to malpractices. The main environmental issues confronting Indian resources are:

1. Dependence on Erratic Monsoon: Irrigation covers only about 33 percent of the cultivated area in India. The crop production in the rest of the cultivated land directly depends on rainfall. Poor monsoon adversely affects the supply of canal water for irrigation. Rainfall in drought-prone areas is too meager and highly unreliable. Even the areas receiving high annual rainfall experience considerable fluctuations. This makes them vulnerable to both droughts and floods. Droughts and floods continue to be twin menace in India.
2. Low productivity: The yield of the crops in the country is low in comparison to the international level. Indian agriculture is also very low in comparison to the international level. The vast rainfed areas of the country, particularly drylands, which mostly grow coarse cereals, pulses, and oilseeds, have very low yields.
3. Degradation of Cultivable Land: One of the serious problems that arise out of faulty strategy of irrigation and agricultural development is the degradation of land resources. It leads to depletion of soil fertility. In irrigated areas, a large tract of agricultural land lost its fertility due to alkalization and salinization of soils and waterlogging. Excessive use of chemicals such as insecticides and pesticides has led to their concentration in toxic amounts in the soil profile. Leguminous crops have been displaced from the cropping pattern in the irrigated areas and the duration of fallow has substantially reduced owing to multiple cropping. This has obliterated the process of natural fertilization such as nitrogen fixation. Rainfed areas also experience degradation of several types like soil erosion by water and wind erosion which are often induced by human activities.