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Human sustenance is directly dependent on the quality of land and correlates with the sustainability of forests. But unfortunately, land degradation is becoming a global concern day by day. The Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) is spread across 12 states, and the combined effects of climate change, anthropogenic pressure, and practice of shifting cultivation have resulted in a significant loss of soil in these states. The degradation of soil health is a consequence of various factors, including the decline in soil fertility, biological degradation (such as the reduction of organic matter, biomass carbon, and a decrease in the activity and diversity of soil organisms), high erodibility, increased acidity and salinity, and the exposure of compacted subsoil with unfavorable physicochemical properties. In this chapter, we discuss the status of desertification, forest, and land degradation in the Indian Himalayan States (IHS). Maximum area under desertification was observed in Himachal Pradesh, followed by Tripura and Nagaland. Further results showed that IHS is highly vulnerable to habitat loss, which is greatest in Arunachal Pradesh, followed by Manipur, Nagaland, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and West Bengal, facing highest losses across the country with 257, 249, 235, 186, 73, and 70 sq. km, respectively. Thus, proper and effective management of the soil health is urgently required in IHS, to safeguard biodiversity and rural economy.

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Land Degradation and Soil Health Nexus in the Indian Himalayan Region

  • 章节

  • 发表日期：

    2025年

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  • Amrender Singh Rao,
  • Ajay Chauhan,
  • Tanay Barman,
  • Arpit Huria,
  • Divesh Pangtey,
  • Krishna Giri,
  • Gaurav Mishra,
  • Sanjeev Kumar

摘要

Human sustenance is directly dependent on the quality of land and correlates with the sustainability of forests. But unfortunately, land degradation is becoming a global concern day by day. The Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) is spread across 12 states, and the combined effects of climate change, anthropogenic pressure, and practice of shifting cultivation have resulted in a significant loss of soil in these states. The degradation of soil health is a consequence of various factors, including the decline in soil fertility, biological degradation (such as the reduction of organic matter, biomass carbon, and a decrease in the activity and diversity of soil organisms), high erodibility, increased acidity and salinity, and the exposure of compacted subsoil with unfavorable physicochemical properties. In this chapter, we discuss the status of desertification, forest, and land degradation in the Indian Himalayan States (IHS). Maximum area under desertification was observed in Himachal Pradesh, followed by Tripura and Nagaland. Further results showed that IHS is highly vulnerable to habitat loss, which is greatest in Arunachal Pradesh, followed by Manipur, Nagaland, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and West Bengal, facing highest losses across the country with 257, 249, 235, 186, 73, and 70 sq. km, respectively. Thus, proper and effective management of the soil health is urgently required in IHS, to safeguard biodiversity and rural economy.