Land is a fundamental resource that provides shelter and food. India has 329 million hectares of land, comprising 13% of the world's total land area and ranking 7th globally in size. However, India's land utilization is not at its optimum potential. Land degradation refers to the deterioration of soil and loss of its productivity and fertility. It is estimated that India loses 6000 million tons of topsoil annually due to factors like erosion from water, wind, and human activities like deforestation, mining, and construction. Soil erosion decreases the nutrients in soil like nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, reducing its fertility. Desertification is the process by which fertile land turns into desert due to removal of trees and unsustainable agricultural practices.

1. LAND RESOURCES
KHATIJA KAINATH. T

2. LAND AS A RESOURCE
 Land is the fundamental resource as it
provides shelter and food to man.
 In India the total geographical land area is 329
million hectares i.e.,13% of the total area of
the world.
 In terms of size India ranks SEVENTH among
the countries of the world.
 The utilization of land in India is not to its
optimum potential.

3. LAND DEGRADATION
Land degradation refers to
 Deterioration of soil
 Loss of productive capacity of soil
 Loss of fertility of the soil
 it is estimated that India losses annually 6000
MILLION TONS of top soil.

4. National Commission for Agriculture has
estimated that the total area subjected to
land degradation is 175million hectares.
 Out of this,
 150 million hectares by water and wind
erosion
 6 million hectares by water logging
 8 million hectares by salinity.

5. MAN INDUCED LAND SLIDES
 The movement of earthy material from
higher region to lower region due to gravity is
called mass movement.
 If it is through a definite plane then it is land
slide.
landslides can cause,
o In areas repeatedly rocked by earthquake
o Heavy and prolonged rainfall

6. LANDSLIDE DISASTER DUE TO
HUMAN ACTIVITIES
 Removal of vegetation in the sloppy areas
 Underground mining activities
 Vehicular transport in the unstable sloppy
regions
 Building of huge dams

7. SOIL EROSION
 Soil erosion is the washing or blowing away of
the top layer of the soil.
 It washes away the nutrients in soil such as
nitrogen, phosphate and potassium are lost
resulting in infertility of the soil.
 In India in 1971 alone 6000 million tons of soil
was lost.

8. CAUSES OF SOIL EROSION
RAINFALL- raindrops directly strike the soil
surface and detach the soil particles.
WIND- transportation of soil and sand
particle by wind by wind is best seen in
deserts and along the seashore.
BIOTIC FACTORS- grazing by cattle, cutting
down of trees, agricultural activities,
construction of buildings and laying of roads.

9. DESERTIFICATION
 Desertification is a process by which fertile
land becomes desert.
Causes for the origin of manmade deserts,
 Removal of trees
 Modern methods of agriculture instead of
more traditional
 Over exploitation of fertile soil particularly in
areas of low rainfall by cultivating cash crops.

10. SOIL CONSERVATION
 The aim of soil conservation is to increase
food production without soil loss.
 National Wasteland Development Board was
set up by the Central Government in 1995 to
bring 5 million hectares of wasteland/year.