Lok Sabha Question No. 297 (STARRED), answered on 2019-01-01
Subject: Soil Pollution
Ministry: AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE
Asked by: KULAMANI SAMAL

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH & EDUCATION

## LOK SABHA

## STARRED QUESTION NO. 297

TO BE ANSWERED ON 01/01/2019

## SOIL POLLUTON

## *297.  DR. KULAMANI SAMAL:

Will the Minister of AGRICULTURE & FARMERS WELFARE d`f'k vkSj fdlku dY;k.k ea=h be pleased to state:

- (a) whether soil pollution has increased all over the country in the last two decades;

- (b) if so, the extent of the problem of soil pollution, State and Union territory-wise;

- (c) whether  the  Indian  Council  for  Agricultural  Research  (ICAR)  and  the  National Academy  of  Agricultural  Sciences  have  estimated  that  71  per  cent  of  the  country's cultivated  fields  and  croplands  are  moving  towards  conditions  that  would  no  longer support farming, if so, the details thereof and the extent of the problem, State and Union territory-wise; and

- (d) the steps taken by the Government to overcome them and the progress made so far, State and Union Territory-wise?

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE d`f'k vkSj fdlku dY;k.k ea=h (SHRI RADHA MOHAN SINGH)

(a) to (d)

: A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

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## STATEMENT IN RESPECT OF PARTS (a) to (d) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 297 TO BE ANSWERED ON 01/01/2019 REGARDING 'SOIL POLLUTION'

(a) No systematic assessment of soil pollution is available in the country. However, as per  harmonized database (NAAS 2010), nearly 120.4  million ha area of the country is subjected to land degradation.

(b) Doesn't arise.

(c) Yes, Madam. About 71% of India's cultivated fields or nearly 100 million ha of croplands  are  subjected  to  various  forms  of  land  degradation  affecting  farming.  The extent of such land degradation, State and Union territory-wise is given in Annexure-I .

(d) The Government is  undertaking soil and moisture conservation measures under Watershed Development Component (WDC) of the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY). The State and Union Territory-wise progress is given in Annexure -II.

Similarly, the Government has launched Reclamation of Problem Soils (Alkali/Saline & Acid) as a sub Scheme of Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) on Pilot  basis  during  2016-17  in  15  States,  namely,  Arunachal  Pradesh,  Assam,  Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Punjab and Tamil Nadu having higher extent of problem soils.  The State and Union Territory-wise progress is given in Annexure -III.

Also,  the  Government  has  enacted The  Environment  (Protection)  Act in  1986 (http://cpcb.nic.in/env-protection-act/) and the last amended in 1991 with the objective of providing for the protection and improvement of the environment including water, air and land.

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Table: State-wise extent of land degradation in arable land of India.

| S.No.   | State                     |   TGA (sq.km) |   Land degradation in arable area (000' ha) |
|---------|---------------------------|---------------|---------------------------------------------|
| 1       | Andhra Pradesh &Telangana |        275045 |                                        8378 |
| 2       | A. &N. Islands            |          8249 |                                          71 |
| 3       | Arunachal Pradesh         |         83743 |                                         971 |
| 4       | Assam                     |         78438 |                                        3869 |
| 5       | Bihar                     |         94163 |                                        1142 |
| 6       | Chhattisgarh              |        134805 |                                        4562 |
| 7       | Delhi                     |          1483 |                                          28 |
| 8       | Goa                       |          3702 |                                         122 |
| 9       | Gujarat                   |        196024 |                                        3037 |
| 10      | Haryana                   |         44212 |                                         551 |
| 11      | Himachal Pradesh          |         55673 |                                        1021 |
| 12      | Jammu &Kashmir            |        222236 |                                        1405 |
| 13      | Jharkhand                 |         79714 |                                        3472 |
| 14      | Karnataka                 |        191791 |                                        7744 |
| 15      | Kerala                    |         38863 |                                        2516 |
| 16      | Madhya Pradesh            |        308641 |                                       12481 |
| 17      | Maharashtra               |        307713 |                                        9305 |
| 18      | Manipur                   |         22327 |                                         258 |
| 19      | Meghalaya                 |         22429 |                                         357 |
| 20      | Mizoram                   |         21081 |                                         150 |
| 21      | Nagaland                  |         16579 |                                          60 |
| 22      | Orissa                    |        155707 |                                        2525 |
| 23      | Punjab                    |         50362 |                                         420 |
| 24      | Rajasthan                 |        342239 |                                       19211 |
| 25      | Sikkim                    |          7096 |                                          47 |
| 26      | Tamil Nadu                |        130058 |                                        2857 |
| 27      | Tripura                   |         10486 |                                         212 |
| 28      | Uttar Pradesh             |        238566 |                                       13891 |
| 29      | Uttarakhand               |         55845 |                                        1057 |
| 30      | West Bengal               |         88752 |                                        2030 |
| 31      | Others*                   |          1248 |                                         125 |
|         | Total                     |       3287270 |                                      103875 |

Source: Maji et al. (2010). Degraded and Wastelands of India - Status and Spatial Distribution.

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## [Part (d) of Lok Sabha SQ No.297 for 01/01/2019]

## State-wise details of progress under  WDC-PMKSY - projects sanctioned, area covered by the projects and funds released (2015-16 to 2017-18& 2018-19) as Central share

(Area in million ha, Amount in Rs. Crore)

@ Sanctioned  under  the  erstwhile  Integrated  Watershed  Management  Programme  (IWMP),  which  has been amalgamated  as  the  Watershed  Development  Component  (WDC)  of  the  Pradhan  MantriKrishiSinchayeeYojana (PMKSY) from 2015-16

|         |                   | Sanctioned (from 2009-10 to 2014-15) @   | Sanctioned (from 2009-10 to 2014-15) @   |         |         |         |         |
|---------|-------------------|------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------|---------|---------|---------|---------|
| Sr. No. | State             | No. of Projects                          | Area of the Projects                     | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 |
| 1       | Andhra Pradesh    | 432                                      | 1.810                                    | 86.73   | 120.96  | 123.35  | 129.35  |
| 2       | Arunachal Pradesh | 156                                      | 0.467                                    | 18.00   | 23.12   | 9.62    | 19.17   |
| 3       | Assam             | 372                                      | 1.577                                    | 45.00   | 0.00    | 65.09   | 0       |
| 4       | Bihar             | 123                                      | 0.612                                    | 5.00    | 28.26   | 19.21   | 26.08   |
| 5       | Chhattisgarh      | 263                                      | 1.195                                    | 20.00   | 34.96   | 33.45   | 32.49   |
| 6       | Gujarat           | 610                                      | 3.103                                    | 100.00  | 115.04  | 87.51   | 84.69   |
| 7       | Haryana           | 88                                       | 0.362                                    | 6.91    | 12.82   | 10.94   | 0       |
| 8       | Himachal Pradesh  | 163                                      | 0.840                                    | 20.00   | 35.40   | 26.83   | 24.04   |
| 9       | Jammu &Kashmir    | 159                                      | 0.652                                    | 0.00    | 25.59   | 43.66   | 31.10   |
| 10      | Jharkhand         | 171                                      | 0.911                                    | 20.00   | 17.68   | 0       | 28.83   |
| 11      | Karnataka         | 571                                      | 2.569                                    | 125.00  | 145.72  | 175.69  | 101.07  |
| 12      | Kerala            | 83                                       | 0.423                                    | 20.00   | 16.62   | 17.83   | 13.06   |
| 13      | Madhya Pradesh    | 517                                      | 2.937                                    | 150.00  | 129.44  | 134.84  | 97.45   |
| 14      | Maharashtra       | 1186                                     | 5.128                                    | 250.00  | 186.95  | 279.21  | 0       |
| 15      | Manipur           | 102                                      | 0.491                                    | 9.00    | 11.29   | 13.84   | 14.14   |
| 16      | Meghalaya         | 96                                       | 0.236                                    | 18.00   | 11.56   | 8.95    | 0       |
| 17      | Mizoram           | 89                                       | 0.373                                    | 8.87    | 16.06   | 22.35   | 14.41   |
| 18      | Nagaland          | 111                                      | 0.476                                    | 27.00   | 60.84   | 32.08   | 23.10   |
| 19      | Odisha            | 310                                      | 1.700                                    | 67.50   | 91.99   | 94.48   | 58.17   |
| 20      | Punjab            | 67                                       | 0.314                                    | 7.95    | 0.00    | 7.96    | 0       |
| 21      | Rajasthan         | 1025                                     | 5.764                                    | 200.00  | 199.35  | 243.59  | 179.40  |
| 22      | Sikkim            | 15                                       | 0.066                                    | 6.30    | 0.00    | 1.40    | 0       |
| 23      | Tamil Nadu        | 270                                      | 1.368                                    | 75.00   | 62.36   | 82.75   | 36.00   |
| 24      | Telangana         | 330                                      | 1.399                                    | 70.00   | 0.00    | 51.14   | 45.70   |
| 25      | Tripura           | 65                                       | 0.213                                    | 20.89   | 27.12   | 16.66   | 11.70   |
| 26      | Uttarakhand       | 65                                       | 0.346                                    | 25.68   | 16.15   | 9.97    | 6.98    |
| 27      | Uttar Pradesh     | 612                                      | 3.045                                    | 75.00   | 58.38   | 63.93   | 0       |
| 28      | West Bengal       | 163                                      | 0.693                                    | 10.00   | 24.06   | 15.48   | 25.87   |
|         | Total             | 8214                                     | 39.07                                    | 1487.83 | 1471.72 | 1691.81 | 1002.80 |

Note: 1) WDC-PMKSY is not operational in Union Territories.  2) There is no sanctioned project in Goa.

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## State wise Physical and Financial Progress on Reclamation of Problem Soils (Alkali/saline & Acid) as a sub-scheme of Rashtriya krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) on Pilot basis

(Physical/Target in ha and Financial/Outlay in Rs. Lakh)

| SL. No.   | Name of the State   | 2016-17   | 2016-17                           | 2017-18   | 2017-18                           | 2018-19   | 2018-19                        |
|-----------|---------------------|-----------|-----------------------------------|-----------|-----------------------------------|-----------|--------------------------------|
| SL. No.   | Name of the State   | Physical  | Financial (including State Share) | Physical  | Financial (including State Share) | Target    | Outlay (including State Share) |
| 1.        | Arunachal Pradesh   | 711       | 111.111                           | 362       | 55.56                             | 740       | 111.11                         |
| 2.        | Assam               | NI        | NI                                | NI        | NI                                | 0         | 0.00                           |
| 3.        | Bihar               | 0         | 0.00                              | 478       | 176.99                            | 278       | 166.66                         |
| 4.        | Chhattisgarh        | 2300      | 166.66                            | 1190      | 81.53                             | 2222      | 333.33                         |
| 5.        | Gujarat             | 1847      | 1120.00                           | 1502      | 1148.01                           | 1528      | 916.66                         |
| 6.        | Haryana             | NI        | NI                                | NI        | NI                                | 278       | 166.66                         |
| 7.        | Karnataka           | 825       | 249.33                            | 278       | 125.00                            | 833       | 500.00                         |
| 8.        | Maharashtra         | NI        | NI                                | NI        | NI                                | 0         | 0.00                           |
| 9.        | Manipur             | 1400      | 97.087                            | NR        | NR                                | 370       | 55.55                          |
| 10.       | Meghalaya           | 339       | 53.39                             | 1455      | 55.55                             | 400       | 60.00                          |
| 11.       | Mizoram             | 724       | 111.11                            | 740       | 111.11                            | 740       | 111.11                         |
| 12.       | Nagaland            | 0         | 0.00                              | 640       | 100.00                            | 311       | 46.66                          |
| 13.       | Odisha              | NI        | NI                                | NI        | NI                                | 277       | 166.66                         |
| 14.       | Punjab              | NI        | NI                                | NR        | NR                                | 0         | 0.00                           |
| 15.       | Tamil Nadu          | 440       | 333.5                             | 346.6     | 175.23                            | 844       | 506.66                         |
|           | Total               | 8586      | 2242. 188                         | 6991.6    | 2028.98                           | 8821      | 3141.06                        |

NR-Not Reported

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