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Soil Degradation Crisis: It is very important to have essential elements like soil, water, air on our earth. It is not easy to imagine life without them. Importance of soil is the basis of food security and environmental efficiency in our life. Without soil, crops do not grow, so there is no option to eat there, children. For the farmers of our country, soil is the first need, whereas for the citizens of the country, it is the first duty to conserve the soil. World Soil Day is celebrated every year on 5 December to highlight the importance of soil across the world. Soil is important for us but at present the land is losing its topsoil rapidly. In India, 29% of the total geographical area (328.7 million hectares) i.e. more than 96.4 million hectares has been degraded.

Impact of soil erosion on productivity

Here there is a shortage of essential nutrients present in the soil, due to which productivity is affected. There is a continuous 40 percent decrease in fertility in the soil. There is a deficiency of organic carbon, an essential element. This decreasing organic carbon has an adverse effect on productivity. In many places, the land has started becoming barren due to poor soil health. In the coming 60 years, the existence of soil will also be on the verge of extinction.

Factors like agricultural practices, over-exploitation of land, mining and deforestation are responsible for deteriorating the health of the soil. Over-exploitation of soil and accumulation of waste materials leads to extinction of biodiversity and species. All these things are essential for our environment but now they are gradually losing their existence.

Importance of Soil (Ms. Social Media)

What changes need to be brought about?

Here we have to make efforts in our daily life or globally to save the soil from extinction. For this many changes need to be made. Focus on tree planting, not deforestation. Land-use practices to conserve soil can also help combat drought, floods, wildfires, sandstorms and dust- pollution. Understanding the importance of soil, many countries have decided under the United Nations convention to restore one billion hectares of barren land by 2030.

Let us tell you, in India, work is being done to restore 26 million hectares of barren land in the country. Nitrogen in the soil should be 400 kg per hectare, but it has reached zero. From all these things we can guess what the condition of the soil could be in the coming days.