Degradation of Land and Forest Resources: The Story of Shifting Cultivation and Loss of Biodiversity in North-East India

Abstract

One of the relevancies of the Northeast India for scientific investigations has been its richness in biodiversity but the foremost important germane arises from degradation of the same, especially soil resources, due to the existence of fragile ecosystems which include combinations of hostile physical and cultural environments within the hilly forested milieu of the tribal people. Great efforts have been made by agencies for implementation of alternative farming systems to do away with the traditional shifting cultivation to menace rapid rate of degradation to resources, but have failed. An attempt has been made to quantify soil loss from the hilly regions using a mathematical model and efforts have been rendered to measure the spatial extent under degradation of resources and different land use systems with the applications of advanced techniques. Special attention has been given to shifting cultivation and measures to control soil erosion have been suggested which could be socially acceptable and economically affordable by the poor tribal farmers in hilly forested terrain.