Wasteland Atlas-2019 | 07 Nov 2019

Why in News?

Recently, the Ministry of Rural Development has released the fifth edition of Wastelands Atlas (2019).

  • It has been prepared by the Department of Land Resources (Ministry of Rural Development) in collaboration with the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), Department of Space.

Significance of Wasteland Atlas

  • Unprecedented pressure on the land beyond its carrying capacity is resulting in the degradation of lands in the country.
  • Therefore, robust geospatial information on wastelands will be helpful in rolling back the wastelands for productive use through various land development programmes.

Key Points

  • A reduction in the wasteland area was observed in the categories of land with dense scrub, marshy land, sandy areas, and degraded pastures.
  • The wastelands have undergone a positive change in the states of Rajasthan, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Mizoram, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, and West Bengal.
  • The majority of wastelands have been changed into categories of croplands, plantation and industrial areas.

Wastelands

  • Wastelands are a barren and uncultivated land lying unproductive or which is not being utilized to its potential.
    • It includes degraded forests, overgrazed pastures, drought-struck pas­tures, eroded valleys, hilly slopes, waterlogged marshy lands, barren land, etc.

Source: PIB