Land degradation, desertification increasing: ISRO atlas

Context

According to a new ISRO atlas, 29.7 per cent of India’s land is degraded.

Mapping land degradation

As per data given, land degradation year-wise

• In 2003-05, 94.53 mha (28.76 per cent of the total geographical area (TGA) underwent land degradation.
• In 2011-13, the number increased to 96.40 mha (29.32 percent of the TGA).
• Desertification and Land Degradation Atlas of India: During 2018-19, 97.85 million hectares (mha) of India’s total geographical area (TGA) of 328.72 mha underwent land degradation.
• Space Applications Centre (SAC)’s Atlas (June 2021): 7 percent of the country’s land in this year became degraded.

• SAC comes under ISRO.

What is Land Degradation? 

• Land degradation is the deterioration or loss of the productive capacity of the soils for present and future.
• It is caused by multiple forces, including extreme weather conditions, particularly drought.
• It is also caused by human activities that pollute or degrade the quality of soils and land utility.

Land desertification

• Besides land degradation, desertification had also increased.
• Land degradation within dry land regions (arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid regions) is termed as ‘desertification’.
• Desertification is a form of land degradation by which fertile land becomes desert.  
• Besides land degradation, desertification had also increased.

Causes of land desertification

• Loss of soil cover, mainly due to rainfall and surface runoff
• Water erosion
• Vegetation degradation
• Wind erosion