The World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought is observed on June 17 to promote public awareness relating to international cooperation to combat desertification and the effects of drought. This year the day emphasizes the important link between land degradation and migration. Among others, environmental degradation, food insecurity and poverty are causes of migration and development challenges.
land degradation impacts agricultural productivity, bio-diversity, groundwater and overall water availability. All these lead to a decline in the quality of life, eventually affecting the socio-economic status of the region. land degradation has far-reaching consequences that affect lives and livelihoods of the population, often resulting in forced migration and socio-economic conflicts. The eradication of rural poverty is closely linked to the fight against desertification. The majority of the world’s poorest people live in rural areas of developing countries, where they depend on agriculture and related activities for their survival. Without access to sustainable land use practices and institutional services, most poor farmers are obliged to cultivate degraded land that is unable to meet their needs. This constant pressure on the land causes a decline in food production that further aggravates poverty and migration.
Odisha is already witnessing droughts, forced migration and food insecurity among the poor sections. Though 38 per cent of the State’s geographical area is forest, much of these forests are degraded. Some of the chronically drought prone areas in Odisha are Kalahandi, Bolangir and Koraput districts which occurs due to erratic rainfall in the area. The extreme difference in the maximum and minimum temperature, scarcity of rainfall, huge loss of green cover and vegetation are the main reasons behind drought. Many parts Kalahandi,
Bolangir and Koraput districts have developed symptoms of drought and degraded from drought prone to desert prone areas. In Odisha, agriculture sector contributes about 50 per cent of the State domestic product and provides employment to about 75 per cent of the total working force. The basic problems in these areas include water scarcity which results in low productivity. Poor and unsustainable land management techniques also worsen the situation. Desertification often causes rural lands to become unable to support the same sized populations that previously lived there. This results in mass migrations from rural to urban areas.
Though India does not have a specific policy or legislative framework for combating desertification, land degradation and desertification gets reflected in many of the national acts and policies which have enabling provisions for addressing these problems.
These Acts are Indian Forest Act, 1927, Environment (Protection) Act- 1986, National Forest Policy- 1988, National Agricultural Policy- 2000, National Environmental Policy- 2006, National Policy for Farmers- 2007, National Green Tribunal Act- 2010 etc.
The National Action Programme to Combat Desertification (NAP-CD) formulated and submitted to United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification(UNCCD) in 2001, identifies the need to address and incorporate natural resource conservation and management, socio-economic issues, strengthening the process of decentralisation of governance and formulation of more community driven projects and programmes, public participation, strengthening the interface and co-ordination between various stakeholders, and awareness raising for sustainable development.
The Integrated Watershed Management Programme (IWMP) is being implemented by the Ministry of Rural Development. It is a comprehensive programme that brings together three different long existing watershed programmes viz. Drought Prone Areas Programme -DPAP (started 1973-74), Desert Development Programme – DDP (started 1977-78) and Integrated Wasteland Development Programme – IWDP (started 1989-90) to be implemented under Common Guidelines on Watershed Development, 2008. The main objectives of the IWMP are to restore the ecological balance by harnessing, conserving and developing degraded natural resources such as soil, vegetative cover and water. The IWMP is a comprehensive programme implemented to develop widespread degraded land across the country by common guidelines. These guidelines broadly indicate a fresh framework for the next generation watershed programmes. States are empowered to sanction and oversee the implementation of watershed projects within their areas of jurisdiction and within the parameters set out in these guidelines.
The National Afforestation Programme (NAP) is implemented by National Afforestation and Eco-Development Board (NAEB), the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests. The NAP aims to support and accelerate the ongoing process of devolving forest protection, management and development functions to decentralized institutions of Joint Forest Management Committee (JFMC) at the village level, and Forest Development Agency (FDA) at the forest division level. The National Watershed Development Project for Rainfed Areas (NWDPRA) introduced by the Ministry of Agriculture in 1990-91 is based on the twin concepts of integrated watershed management and sustainable farming systems.
This project is aimed at restoring ecological balance in degraded and fragile rainfed eco-systems and promoting diversified farming systems to enhance the income levels of farmers and village communities on a sustainable basis. Rainfed areas constitute about 85 mha, i.e. 60 per cent of the total 142 mha net cultivated area in India. Rainfed agriculture is characterized by low levels of productivity and low input usage.
Therefore, the National Agriculture Policy seeks to promote an integrated and holistic development of rainfed areas through conservation of rain water and augmentation of biomass production.
Hence, highest priority is given to the holistic and sustainable development of rainfed areas through a watershed development approach.
To give a special thrust to these areas the National Rainfed Area Authority (NRAA) was set up in 2006.
The Integrated Watershed Management Programme may be implemented in drought prone areas to tackle the special problems faced by severe drought conditions. There is need for a better understanding of the scientific basis of droughts: their definition, monitoring, impacts, prediction and to bring this knowledge to sectoral experts involved in various aspects of drought management. Understanding the historical frequency, duration, and spatial extent of drought assists planners in determining the likelihood and potential severity of future droughts.
The characteristics of past droughts provide benchmarks for projecting similar conditions into the future. At the same time, successful experiences in adopting a comprehensive and active approach across various sectors in dealing with droughts should be widely shared, and the capacity to apply such approaches built and developed where needed.
(Dr Praharaj teaches in Department of Architecture, College of Engineering and Technology, Bhubaneswar)