Question

Explain the main causes of land degradation. In point form

Answer 1

1.main cause is deforestation that is cutting of more and more trees.
2.soil erosion is also one of the main reasons.
3.over grazing of animals is another main reason.

Answer 2

1. Excessive Population Pressure on Land:

India’s population of over 1000 million people is more than that of the whole world prior to the Industrial Revolution.

2. Deforestation:

India loses 1.3 million hectares of forests per year. One of the major causes of desertification is the cutting down of trees. According to the National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA), India had less than 11.4% of area under forest as per the 1992 observation. But the more recent satellite pictures show that the forest cover is now less than 10%.

3. Erosion:

Loss of vegetative cover has made land more susceptible to erosion. Agents of erosion like wind and water have left vast tracts of land barren. Water erodes top soil to an extent of around 12,000 million tonnes (mt) per annum. The loss of top soil represents a permanent depletion of the resource base. The annual loss caused by the erosion of top soil through water comes to Rs.12,000 Crores.

4. Over-Irrigation:

Big irrigation projects no doubt have brought prosperity to millions of farmers. But, due to over-enthusiasm, many farmers have resorted to successive cropping and over-irrigation, thereby leading to water-logging and consequent salinisation and alkalinisation. This situation mainly arises due to poor drainage.

5. Floods and Droughts:

It is ironical that in India both floods and droughts occur regularly and alternately.

According to the National Commission on Agriculture (1976), there are three types of drought:

(i) Meteorological drought caused by a marked decrease in rainfall.

sources.

(iii) Agricultural drought caused by insufficient rainfall to support crops.

35% of the land is drought-prone and receives rainfall of less than 750 mm. Another 18.5% of the land receiving 750-1000 mm. falls in the transitional zone. The remaining 46.5% receiving rainfall of over 1000 mm. falls under the humid zone.

The impact of drought leads to shortage of fodder, shortage of drinking water, loss in agricultural production, and a general decline in living standards.

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