GIS-Based Major Crop Suitability Evaluation for Soil Health Maintenance and Climate Resilience in Arid Region of Andhra Pradesh, India

The anticipatedCrop suitability impact of climate changeClimate change could exacerbate the already existing issueSoil health of semi-arid region’s low productivity. This research focuses on assessing the regional variations in soil characteristics and the implications of global climate changeClimate change on diverse agricultural systems. It provides practical recommendations for land use to alleviate the impacts of climate changeClimate change and put in place strategies for adaptation. The study incorporates a land use appropriateness evaluation, utilizing compiled and interpreted GIS data based on soil information. To create suitability maps for each agricultural land, the study integrates soil factors with the GIS environment specific to each crop. In theInagalur panchayet Inagalur Panchayat, a thorough soil survey at a 1:10,000 scale was conducted from 2019 to 2021. This detailed soil survey adopts a four-tier approach, comprising satellite image interpretation, ground truth observation (fieldwork for soil survey), laboratory analysis, and GIS software-based mapping. The base map is an essential reference that was created using geological data, Survey of India Toposheet (1:50,000 scale), and remote sensing satellite data (Cartosat 1 and IRS-P6 LISS IV combined with village cadastral map). Following the soil survey, the Panchayat was divided into eleven soil series (management units). Then, using a variety of themes, including slope, soil depth, soil erosion, texture, gravelliness, accessible water content, soil response (pH), electrical conductivity (EC), and organic carbon, the study mapped out the main problems and opportunities related to soil. By assessing the impact of these soil problems on crop productivity through GIS mapping, the research facilitates the evaluation of the suitability of different crops—such as Paddy, Maize, Bajra, Groundnut, Castor, Red gram, Horse gram, Tomato, Mango, Sapota, Guava, Jamun, Custard apple, Amla, and Tamarind—for climate resilience and sustainable productivity in arid regions.