The Hindi lunar months translated into the English calendar and a glossary of local terms help to clarify local epistemological concepts. Desertification in India is both natural and accelerated, through wind and water erosion, water logging, and increased salinity and alkalinity of the soil. Growth in human populations, agriculture and livestock continue to put further strain on fragile ecosystems. During the past fifty years Indian scientists have conducted research with a focus on helping to protect and improve the environment, while encouraging sustainable lifestyles for the country's hundreds of millions of citizens. This publication seeks to collect annotated citations of all journal articles, and those books and monographs in series considered to be the most pertinent by the authors, that are published about India's arid lands.
Annotations range from one sentence to nearly half a page, and primarily present study findings.
An alphabetical author index with associated page numbers, an alphabetical source index, and a plants index that identifies flora by their botanical, English, and local names, provide readers with additional useful information.