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What's the article about?
It talks about the issue of soil degradation and its impact on food security on the occasion of World Soil Day (WSD) 2022.
Relevance:
- GS1: Geography of India;
- GS3: Indian Agriculture
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What is World Soil Day (WSD)?
What is soil?
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Why is soil important?
- Healthy soils are essential for our survival.
- They support healthy plant growth to enhance both our nutrition and water percolation to maintain groundwater levels.
- Soils help to regulate the planet’s climate by storing carbon and are the second largest carbon sink after the oceans.
- They help maintain a landscape that is more resilient to the impacts of droughts and floods.
What is soil degradation?
- Soil degradation is the physical, chemical and biological decline in soil quality.
- It can be the loss of organic matter, decline in soil fertility, and structural condition.
- Today, nutrient loss and pollution significantly threaten soils, and thereby undermine nutrition and food security globally.
- The main drivers contributing to soil degradation are industrial activities, mining, waste treatment, agriculture, fossil fuel extraction and processing and transport emissions.
- The reasons behind soil nutrient loss range from soil erosion, runoff, leaching and the burning of crop residues.
- Soil degradation in some form or another affects around 29% of India’s total land area.
Nearly 3.7 million hectares suffer from nutrient loss in soil (depletion of soil organic matter, or - SOM).
Further, excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides, and irrigation with contaminated wastewater are also polluting soils.
What is India’s conservation strategy?
- The Government of India is implementing a five-pronged strategy for soil conservation.
- This includes making soil chemical-free, saving soil biodiversity, enhancing SOM, maintaining soil moisture, mitigating soil degradation and preventing soil erosion.
- Some initiatives includes:
- Soil Health Card (SHC) scheme (2015) – to provide status of soil’s health to farmers
- Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana – to prevent soil erosion, regeneration of natural vegetation, rainwater harvesting and recharging of the groundwater table
- National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) – to promote traditional indigenous practices such as organic farming and natural farming, thereby reducing dependency on chemicals and other agri-inputs, and decreasing the monetary burden on smallholder farmers.
- Collaboration with FAO –
- The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) undertakes multiple activities to support the Government of India’s efforts in soil conservation towards fostering sustainable agrifood systems.
- The FAO is collaborating with the National Rainfed Area Authority and the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare (MoA&FW) to develop forecasting tools using data analytics that will aid vulnerable farmers in making informed decisions on crop choices, particularly in rainfed areas.
- The FAO, in association with the Ministry of Rural Development, supports the Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission’s (DAY-NRLM) Community Resource Persons to increase their capacities towards supporting on-farm livelihoods for the adoption of sustainable and resilient practices, organic certification and agri-nutri-gardens.
Way Forward:
As consumers and citizens, we can contribute by planting trees to protect topsoil, developing and maintaining home/kitchen gardens, and consuming foods that are mainly locally sourced and seasonal.
