9th Plan To Kick Off Land Reclamation

An effort is likely to be made for the first time during the 9th plan period for the reclamation of vast stretches of saline land along the countrys coastline.

An area of about 40,000 sq kms is estimated to have succumbed to salinity of varying degrees in states like West Bengal, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala.

Land reclamation measures, using the latest technology, are proposed to be introduced on about one lakh hectares of saline land during the 9th plan at an estimated cost of Rs 65 crore.

A similar land reclamation scheme was mooted by the Planning Commission for the 8th plan also. But it was rejected by the government due to fund shortage.

 

As the problem of land degradation due to incursion of sea water into fresh water aquifers has since aggravated, the current proposal to tackle this menace is likely to be approved, say Krishi Bhawan sources.

In Maharashtra, about 720 km-long stretch of coastal belt of khar land is reported to have become uncultivable in Thana, Kulaba and Ratnagiri districts. The sea water enters through the creeks (between Sai creek in the north and Terekhol creek in the south) during high tides and submerges large areas of cultivable land, pushing up its salinity level.

The situation in Maharashtra is peculiar in a way as the region is bereft of any source of irrigation though it has a hot and humid climate with rainfall ranging from 254 cm to 316 cm per year.

No systematic study of the ground water level has yet been carried out in this area.

In West Bengal, the sea coast tracts from Digha in Midnapore district to the outfall of river Roimangal in 24 Parganas district is affected by salinity. Besides, a strip along the bank of Hoogly in Howrah district is also reported to have shown a marked presence of saline water.

The coastal saline soils in Karnataka occupy approximately 12,000 hectares chiefly in the two districts of North Karnataka and South Karnataka.

This region receives an annual rainfall of over 300 cm, mostly during the monsoon season.

In many places, the surface soil is sandy loam type with clay layers in lower horizons.

This causes the soil salinity to rise from October onwards due to the withdrawal of monsoon and periodic inundation of the fields with sea water.

In Tamil Nadu, salinity is reported to have spoiled about one lakh hectares of land along the east coast extending from Chingleput, South Arcot, Tanjore and Ramnad to Tirunelveli.

This state is indeed facing the menace of salinity in inland areas as well.

However, the problem of the coastal areas is unique in many respects due to simultaneous occurrence of salinisation, water logging, clay pan formation and sea water inundation.

In Andhra Pradesh, nearly half of the food production comes from eight districts, extending over a coast line of approximately 900 km, facing the threat of salinity. These districts are Srikakulam, Vizayanagram, East Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, Prakasam and Nellore. Soil samples from these areas have revealed that at least 1.76 lakh hectares of land has already been affected by salinity in the districts of Prakasam, Guntur, Krishna and East Godavari.

Salt affected soils in Orissa are estimated to cover over four lakh hectares.

These are distributed over four coastal districts Balasore, Cuttack, Puri and Ganjam. However, the nature of salinity has not yet been studied in detail.

Besides, several coastal regions of Kerala and Gujarat, notably Kuttanad in Kerala and the Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, are afflicted with salinity as they lie below the sea level.

The proposed reclamation scheme envisages surveying and categorisation of saline lands to facilitate development of suitable strategies for their improvement.

The excess salts would be leached down to lower layers with the help of irrigation and rain water or neutralised with suitable chemical amendments, depending on the obtaining situation. Steps would also be taken to prevent water logging and ingress of sea water through mechanical and engineering measures.