Question.
Explain the land use pattern in India and why the land under forests has not increased much since 1960-61?
( Chapter - 1 -Resources and Development, Cass X NCERT Contemporary India -II )
Answer.
Land is a very important abiotic and natural resource. Natural vegetation, wildlife, human life, agriculture, economic activities, transport and communication systems, etc. are all based on land.
About 43 percent of the land in India is plains, while 30 percent of the land is mountainous and 27 percent of the land comes under the plateau area.
The total geographical area of India is 32.8 lakh square km. However, land use data for 93 percent of the land is available as land use data is not available in most of the northeastern states ( except Assam), Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, and Aksai Chin.
Land Use Pattern in India:
Land use is determined by physical factors (topography, climate, soil types) and human factors (population, density, technological capability, and culture and tradition).
Land resources are used for the following five purposes:
- Forest
- Land unsuitable for cultivation (barren and barren land)
- Cultivable wasteland-other than barren land and fallow land.
- fallow land
- Net sown area.
As per General Land Use Statistics 2014-15,
23.3 percent of the land is used for forest purposes while 5.5 percent of the land is a barren and uncultivable wasteland.
8.7 percent of the land is used for non-agricultural use which means it is used for non-primary activities such as industries and transport.
3.3 percent of the land is used for permanent pasture and grazing land while 1 percent is used for tree crops and trees.
About 4 percent of the land is used for cultivable barren land. Cultivable barren land is land that is left fallow for more than five agricultural years.
About 3.6% of the land is ancient fallow land. Ancient fallow land is land that is left fallow for more than one but less than five agricultural years.
About 4.9 percent of the land is presently fallow which means it is left uncultivated for one agricultural year.
About 45.5% of the land is net sown area.
There has been no significant increase in the area under forest since 1960-61:
In 1960-61 there was 18.11 percent forest and it has increased to 23.3 percent in the 2014-15 survey data.
According to the Forest Act of 1952, a minimum of 33 percent of the land is required for the eco-sustainability of India. Despite many efforts, we have been able to cover only 23.3 percent of the forest area.
The land under forests has not increased much since 1960-61 due to the following reasons:
Due to the high pressure of population, the demand for land for cultivation increased due to which some fertile land and forest land have been used for farming.
Some lands like deserts and barren lands do not even grow forests, so they cannot be used for forests.
There has been an increase in the demand for land for non-primary activities such as setting up industries, building dams, and other developmental activities.
Therefore, there has not been much increase in forests since 1960-61.
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