desert atlas

DESERTIFICATION &LAND DEGRADATION

ATLAS OF INDIA

Space Applications Centre,Indian Space Research Organisation

Government Of IndiaAhmedabad

DESERTIFICATION & LAND DEGRADATION ATLAS OF INDIA

2007

PRODIPTO GHOSH

PRODIPTO GHOSH, Ph.D.Secretary

GOVERNMENT OF INDIAMINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT & FORESTS

FOREWARD

Desertification is one of the major environmental concerns of today, affecting the living conditions of hundreds of millions of people across the world. This phenomenon is not confined to the desert areas or to the arid region alone. In case of India, for example, it relates to land degradation in the dry land regions, which constitute about 69% of its geographic area.

The principal objective of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), adopted on June 17, 1994, is to combat desertification in the dry land regions of the world and mitigate the effects of drought. The Convention has special significance to the Asia-Pacific region, which has sizeable proportion of drylands undergoing degradation. The Regional Action Programme for the Asia-Pacific region, therefore, identified a comprehensive set of issue classified in six Thematic Programme Networks (TPNs). Out of these, TPN-1, relating to desertification monitoring and assessment, has two primary mandates. first, to establish a national network on this issue. And second, to organize desertification status mapping (DSM). The National Network on TPN-1 has been established in the country, with Space Application Centre (ISRO) as the focal organisation with 17 supporting institutions, including AISLUS, NBSS&LUP, CAZRI, NATMO, IMD, MoFF, JNU, IRS-Anna University, University of Rajasthan, University of Jammu, NRSA, EOS (ISRO), MPRSAC, CRIDA, HARSAC, DEARS (J&K) and RRSC-Jodhpur.

Spatial inventory of land degradation/desertification based on scientific methods is not available for our country. Towards this, Space Applications Centre (SAC), ISRO had taken up a pilot project to standardize a national level classification system and the methodology for DSM using satellite data. Adopting the classification system and the methodology, standardized through the pilot project, SAC has prepared the desertification/land degradation map for the entire country using recent Indian Remote Satellite data. As per this inventory, 105.48 mha land of our country is under the process of degradation.

This present atlas on desertification/land degradation status will serve as a base for any further monitoring and assessment of desertification in the country. I appreciate the efforts made by the national team led by Dr. Ajai in carrying out his important endeavour.

, , , x|, x ( x|

PARYAVARAN BHAWAN, C.G.O. COMPLEX, LODHI ROAD, NEW DELHI - 110 003. TEL : 24360721, 24361896. FAX : (011) 24362746email : [email protected]

iSPACE APPLICATIONS CENTRE, AHMEDABAD


GOVERNMENT OF INDIADEPARTMENT OF SPACE

Antariksh Bhvan, New BEL RoadBangalore - 560 094, India

Grams : Space Fax : +91-80-23415328Telephone : +91-80-23415241, 22172333

email : [email protected]

G. Madhavan NairSecretary

PREFACE

India is endowed with a variety of soils, climate, bio-diversity and ecological regions. About 69 percent of the geographical area falls in the dry lands (arid, semi-arid and dry sub- humid) as per Thornthwaite classification. The geo-hydro-thermo folio of India makes large parts of the country vulnerable to water and wind erosion, salinization and water logging, mass wasting, frost heaving, etc. Vulnerability of the land to different forms of degradation is accentuated by high biotic pressure - human and livestock population - resulting in unsustainable land use. A large part of our country's land is undergoing the process of degradation or desertification. There is an urgent need to arrest the process of desertification and combat land degradation.

India has been the signatory to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), which has been adopted on June 17, 1994. One of the prerequisite for combating desertification is to identify area undergoing the process of desertification. However, spatial inventory of land degradation/ desertification based on sound scientific methods are not available for our country. Keeping in view this requirement and also to fulfill the commitment of TPN-1 (Thematic Programme Network on desertification monitoring and assessment under UNCCD) implementation in the country, ISRO has taken up the task of preparation of Land degradation/ Desertification Status Maps for the entire country on 1:0.5 million scale.

The national level classification system as well as the methodology for 'Desertification Status Mapping' (DSM) using satellite data, as evolved and standardized through a pilot project (carried out by Space Applications Centre, ISRO at the behest of MoEF), has been adopted for the national DSM. This is for the first time, the desertification/ land degradation status map of entire country has been prepared. As per the present inventory, 105.48 mha i.e., 32 percent of the geographic area of the country is under going the process of land degradation. The task has been accomplished due to the untiring efforts of the national team comprising of organizations like, AISLUS, NBSS & LUP, CAZRI, JNU, IRS-Anna University, University of Rajasthan, University of Jammu, EOS (ISRO Hq), State Remote Sensing Centres of U.P., Bihar, Orissa, Maharashtra, Arunachal Pradesh, M.P., J&K and SAC, led by Dr. Ajai from SAC. This team deserves compliments for carrying out this important national endeavour.

I hope, the present atlas on desertification/ land degradation will further facilitate the planners in developing appropriate programmes for combating desertification/ land degradation in the country.

BangaloreMarch 12 , 2007 (G. Madhavan Nair)

iiSPACE APPLICATIONS CENTRE, AHMEDABAD


Land degradation and desertification pose an ever - increasing global environmental threat. Human activities such as over cultivation, overgrazing, deforestation and poor irrigation practices, along with climate change, are turning once fertile land into unproductive degraded land. Per capita land availability is shrinking throughout the world, threatening food security, particularly in poor rural areas, and triggering social and economic crisis.

A large portion of our country's land is undergoing process of degradation/ desertification. As per a recent inventory based on IRS-LISS III data, carried out by NRSA indicates that 17.45% of the geographic (55.269 mha) area is under wasteland category. However the land which is undergoing the process of degradation/ desertification is much more. There have been varying figures for the area under land degradation/desertification in the country as estimated by different agencies. Therefore a need was felt to create a spatial inventory of land degradation/desertification in the country. A project was taken up by the Space ApplicationsCentre (ISRO) for mapping the desertification/ land degradation status in the country on 1:0.5 m scale using IRS AWiFS data.

Government of IndiaDepartment of SpaceSPACE APPLICATIONS CENTREAmbavadi Vistar P.O.Ahmedabad-380 015 (India)Telephone : +91-79-26912000, 26915000

Tel : 079-26764956, Fax :079-26915843

PREAMBLE

Ahmedabad February 13, 2007

iiiSPACE APPLICATIONS CENTRE, AHMEDABAD


The project has been successfully executed by SAC along with 17 important organizations of the country.

As per this inventory 105.48 mha land of the country is undergoing the processes of degradation. The efforts made in this national endeavor will go a long way in combating desertification in the country as well as fulfilling our commitments towards implementation of UNCCD.

Government of IndiaDepartment of SpaceSPACE APPLICATIONS CENTREAmbavadi Vistar P.O.Ahmedabad-380 015 (India)Telephone : +91-79-26914133Fax : +91-79-26915825

Dr. AjaiNational Co-ordinator, TPN-1,& Group Director, MESG

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Spatial Inventory on desertification/land degradation status, a prerequisite for preparation of combating plan, has not been available for our country. More ever, it has also been one of the major requirement towards fulfilling our commitment to TPN-1 UNCCD. The task of desertification/land degradation status mapping was taken up by Space Applications Centre (SAC), ISRO, Ahmedabad in collaboration with 17 important organizations/ institutions of the country. It is the team effort which has led to the successful completion of this important national endeavor. I am very much thankful to each and every individuals and the organizations involved in the national team.

The project team express its sincere thanks to Shri G. Madhavan Nair, Secretary, DOS and Dr. Prodipto Ghosh, Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of India for their keen interest in this project.

We are very much thankful to Dr. R.R. Navalgund, Director, Space Applications Centre, Ahmedabad for his encouragement and guidance in carryng out this project. We are thankful to Dr. Ram Rattan, Associate Director, SAC & Dr.K.L. Majumder, the then Dy. Director, RESIPA, SAC, Dr. V. Jayaraman, Director, EOS and Dr. V.S. Hegde, Deputy Director (Applications), EOS, ISRO Headquarters, Bangalore for their support and guidance. Thanks are also due to the Shri J.S. Parihar, Mission Director, EOAM for necessary support.

ivSPACE APPLICATIONS CENTRE, AHMEDABAD


We express our gratitude to Dr. Sanjay Kumar, DIG Forests and Shri B. C.Behra, Under Secretary, MoEF, Govt. of India for all necessary help and support during the tenure of this project.

We are also thankful to Mr. Rui Zheng, Head of Asian Unit, UNCCD, Bonn for providing all necessary information & support from time to time.

We express our thanks to heads of the organizations/Directors of the collaborating agencies for providing all desired help and support to the project.

Last but not the least, we are thankful to Mr. Rahul Tirpude and Mrs. Jyotsna Naidu, FLPG office for their secretarial assistance.

PROJECT TEAMNational Co-ordinator : Dr. Ajai


vSPACE APPLICATIONS CENTRE, AHMEDABAD

Introduction 1

Data Used 2

Classification System 2

Participating Agencies 4

Processes of Desertification / Land Degradation 5

Methodology 15

Desertification & Land degradation status 16

Statewise Maps & Tables 20

References 74

CONTENTS


viSPACE APPLICATIONS CENTRE, AHMEDABAD

1SPACE APPLICATIONS CENTRE, AHMEDABAD




17 Earth Observation System, ISRO, Banglore

PARTICIPATING AGENCIES:

and academic



Severity - Low

Severity - High



Low

High



High



LowLow

HighHigh



HighHigh

LowLow



Barren / Rocky Area

Barren / rocky area as seen on the satellite images and in the field are shown in fig.10



Table-3 Process wise distribution of the area under

land-degradation for India.

DESERTIFICATION LAND DEGRADATION STATUS

in subsequent



DESERTIFICATION/ LAND DEGRADATION STATUS MAP OF INDIA

Figure 12: DESERTIFICATION/ LAND DEGRADATION STATUS MAP OF INDIA

2

=

High1

=

Low

Description

No

Apparent

Degradation

Others,

Man

made

Land

with

Scrub,Water

erosionSw1,2

Land

with

Scrub,Vegetal

degradationSv1,2

Land

with

Scrub,Salinization/

AlkanizationSs1,2

Agriculture

Irrigated

Salinization/AlakanizationIs1,2

Barren,

Salinization/AlakanizationBs1,2

Agriculture

Unirrigated,

Salinization/AlkanizationDs1,2

Land

with

Scrub,Wind

erosionSe1

Agriculture

Irrigated

Wind

erosionIe1,2

Dune/Sandy

area,

Wind

erosionEe1,2

Agriculture

Unirrigated,

Wind

erosionDe1,2

Barren,

Wind

erosionBe1

Agriculture

Irrigated

,

Water

loggingIl1,2

Agriculture

Unirrigated,Water

loggingDl1

Barren,

Water

loggingBl1,2

Rocky

area,

Water

erosionRw1,2

Periglacial,

Frost

shatteringLf1,2

Glacial

,

Frost

heavingCh2

Agriculture

Irrigated,

Water

erosionIw1

Grassland/Grazing

land,

Vegetal

degradationGv2

Forest

/Plantation,Water

erosionFw1,2

Forest

/Plantation,

Vegetal

degradationFv1,2

Forest

/Plantation,Man

madeFm2

Barren,

Man

madeBm1,2

Dune/Sandy

area,

Water

erosionEw1

Periglacial

,

Water

erosionLw1

Agriculture

Unirrigated,Water

erosionDw1,2

Barren,

Water

erosionBw1,2

Barren,

Mass

movementBg1,2

DescriptionCodeSymbol

Tm1,2

NAD

Legend

Classification

System

SeverityProcess

of

degradation

I

D

F/P

G

S

B

R

E

W

C

L

T

v

w

e

s/a

i

g

h

f

m

NAD No

Apparent

Degradation

Agriculture

Irrigated

Agriculture

Unirrigated

Forest

/Plantation

Grassland/Grazing

land

Land

with

Scrub

Barren

(Barren

Scree)

Rockey area

Dune/Sandy area

Water

body/Drainage

Glacial

Periglacial

Others

Vegetal

degradation

Water

erosion

Wind

erosion

Salinization/Alakanization

Water

logging

Mass

movement

Frost heaving

Frost

shattering

Man

made

Symbol Code Description Symbol Code Description Code

1

2

Low

High

Land

use/Land

cover

Source :

Prepared

by

:

&

International

Boundery

State

Boundery

River

/

Stream

Settlement

Area

not

taken

for

mapping

Andaman

&

Nicobar

IslandsLakshdweep

Islands

Chennai

Bangalore

DELHI

N

Total

area

under

:105.48

mha

(

32.07

%

)

Land

degradation

Total

area

under

:

81.45

mha

(24.78

%)

Desertification

Mumbai

Kolkata



11909

163991235



Degradation within the Dryland regions is called `Desertification'. The map showing dryland regions of India (Source:

NBSS&LUP) is given in fig. 13. The process wise status of land degradation within Arid (34.89 mha), Semi-arid (31.99 mha)

and dry-sub humid (14.57 mha) regions is given in table-5 . 81.45 mha area of the country is under desertification (land

degradation within drylands).

Table-5 : Process-wise area (mha) under desertification

SEMI-ARID

SUB-HUMID(DRY)

OTHER

ARID

LEGEND

1

2

3

4

3

2

SPACE APPLICATIONS CENTRE, AHMEDABAD




Rocky Area Water Erosion-1-low (RW1)

Sandy area-Wind erosion-1-low (Ee1)



1925682



Water erosion



Agriculture Irrigated water erosion-low (Iw1)

DESERTIFICATION/ LAND DEGRADATION STATUS MAPMIZORAM



DESERTIFICATION/ LAND DEGRADATION STATUS MAPORISSA



DESERTIFICATION/ LAND DEGRADATION STATUS MAPSIKKIM



DESERTIFICATION/ LAND DEGRADATION STATUS MAPTRIPURA



DESERTIFICATION/ LAND DEGRADATION STATUS MAPUTTARAKHAND



DESERTIFICATION/ LAND DEGRADATION STATUS MAPWEST BENGAL





7

desert atlas

Documents

process of degradation

mha land

dry land regions

assessment of desertification

desertification monitoring

desertification unccd

space applications centre

space application centre