9.5% of India's land degraded, 36.8% drought prone: UNCCD

India has informed the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) that 9.5% of the country’s land area or 3,05,071 square kilometre (km²) remained in a degraded form by the end of 2019, up from 4.4% of India’s total land area in 2015.

In a report submitted to UNCCD, the central government stated that the expansion in the area of degraded land was 162,285 sq km during this period.  The UNCCD’s data dashboard indicates that 251.71 million people or 18.39% of India’s population were exposed to land degradation.

The report also points out that 36.8% of India’s land area was drought prone and 854.4 million or 83.85% of Indian population was exposed to drought situations.

Disclosing the measures undertaken by India to implement its commitments under the Convention, the report said National Mission for a Green India (GIM), one of the eight missions under the national action plan on climate change, aims at protecting, restoring and enhancing India’s forest cover and responding to climate change. “The target under the Mission is 10 m ha on forest and non-forest lands for increasing the forest/tree cover and to improve the quality of existing forest, thus helping in reducing land degradation. All the states are being encouraged for participating in implementing GIM”, the report said. India has allocated ₹298.09 crore and utilised ₹233.43 crores from FY2018 to 2021 under this programme.

The report points out that India is one of the first countries to commit to the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal target of achieving land degradation neutrality (LDN). It also states that India would raise its ambition of the total area that would be restored from its land degradation status from 21 million hectares to 26 million hectares between 2020 and 2030.

The government also said that several central government schemes/programmes have evolved over time to address the need for medium and long-term drought mitigation requirements. The major programmes that were highlighted include Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), Integrated Watershed Management Programme (IWMP), subsuming erstwhile Drought Prone Area Programme (DPAP), National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP), Swarna-Jayanthi Grameen Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY), Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY), Fodder & Feed Development Scheme etc.

UNCCD’s Data Dashboard, launched on October 24, compiles national reporting figures from 126 countries, which shows that land degradation is advancing at an astonishing rate across all regions.

The 21st session of the UNCCD Committee for the Review of the Implementation of the Convention (CRIC 21) is set to convene in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, from 13-17 November 2023. The meeting will review global progress made toward land degradation neutrality (LDN) and confront pressing issues like enhancing drought resilience, promoting women's land rights, and combating sand and dust storms.