Informations et ressources scientifiques
sur le développement des zones arides et semi-arides

Titre : Studies on farm forestry scheme in drought Prone district of Anantapur with special reference to development of wastelands

Auteur : Rao,N. Ramakrishna

Université de soutenance : Sri Krishnadevaraya University

Grade : Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) 1991

Sommaire partiel
Anantapur district is facing the worst ecological and environmental crisis. The protection of environment is the primary concern of the people. Deforestation, denudation and drought are the direct offshoots of land misuse. Large chunks of forest area have been diverted for the purposes of agriculture. The hills and hill slopes in the community lands have been assigned to the landless poor for cultivation. The land hunger did not spare the shrinking forest lands. The forests which constitute 10.3 per cent of the district land mass, bears tree growth hardly in one tenth of the area. The per capita forest has rapidly decreased from 0.11 ha in 1961 to 0.06 in 1991 not only in extent, but also in quality. The agriculture under rainfed conditions is on increase. For economic reasons farmers have switched over to short rotation commercial crops draining the meagre resources of soil nutrients. In the anxiety to bring more area under irrigation, large number of wells are sunk under planned development programmes only to find more number wells going dry year after year and this could be seen in the fluctuating trend in the irrigated area. There is a terrific shortage of fuel and fodder. Fuelwood is not a problem in the sense it is not imported from outside. But it is a continuous drain on the sparse vegetation. Nearly one third of the animal population is underfed and hence unproductive. Nearly 50 per cent of the land available is wasteland, requiring treatment and rest. Ecological restoration of these degraded lands and scientific land husbandry to ensure biological productivity should be the primary concern whether in forest, public or private land. All our massive social programmes during the last 2 decades resulted in afforestation of nearly 76000 ha of degraded land which hardly comprise four per cent of the geographical area. It is necessary and obligatory to have a comprehensive land use policy, stipulating the basic principles guiding the allocation of land for different purposes. Land use shoud be strictly guided by a capability classification so as prevent further deterioration from misuse. Adequate technology is available to practise different methods of agroforestry wherein food and wood could be grown together for mutual benefit, together contributing to the productivity of the land and for ensuring „sustainability and profitability of our farming system.

Mots clés : Forestry Drought Profile Biomass Silvipastoral

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