The Ministry of Agriculture is implementing various Watershed Development Programmes, with a view to prevent soil erosion and land degradation. These are (i) National Watershed Development Project for Rainfed Areas (NWDPRA), (ii) Soil Conservation for Enhancing the Productivity of Degraded Lands in the Catchments of River Valley Project and Flood Prone River (RVP & FPR), (iii) Reclamation and Development of Alkali & Acid Soils (RADAS), (iv) Watershed Development Projects in Shifting Cultivation Areas (WDPSCA).
Under these programmes, in last three years (2006-07 to 2008-09) an amount of Rs.1839.85 crore was allocated, against which Rs.1737.38 crore has been utilized by the States and during current year (2009-10), an amount of Rs.490.48 crore has been allocated.
The soil formation and soil erosion is a natural process, occurring simultaneously to maintain the equilibrium in eco-system. As per the study conducted (2005) by National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning (NBSS&LUP) - Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) Regional Center, Nagpur, out of the country’s total geographical area of 328.60 million ha., about 146.82 million ha. area (45%) is suffering from various kinds of land degradation as per break up given below:-
| S.No. | Type of Land Degradation | Extent of Area in million ha. |
| 1. | Water Erosion | 93.68 |
| 2. | Wind Erosion | 9.48 |
| 3. | Water Logging | 14.30 |
| 4. | Salinity/Alkalinity | 5.95 |
| 5. | Soil Acidity | 16.03 |
| 6. | Complex Problem | 7.38 |
|
| Total | 146.82 |
This information was given in the Lok Sabha by Prof. K.V. Thomas Minister of State for Agriculture, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution in a written reply.
Source: PIB
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