Impact of Landform on Agricultural Land Use Pattern: A Case Study of Salda River Basin in Purulia District, West Bengal

Abstract

The present study is concerned with the analysis of landform characteristics of Salda River basin and its impact on agriculture land use pattern. The Salda basin is one of the sub-basins of Subarnarekha River, with diversified landscape pattern in the western part of Purulia district in West Bengal. This basin is constituted by plateaus, plains with terraces, scarps, inselbergs, which is evolved under polycyclic evolution. The development of polycyclic geomorphic processes in this basin is typified by diverse morphology and drainage, which largely influence the land use pattern in this area. These diverse landscape patterns indicate the interaction of litho-tectonic-structural and various geomorphic processes with recent human intervention.
 The main objectives of the present study are to analyse the landforms characteristics, correlate them with land use and identify problems as well as prospects of agricultural land utilization. The entire study is based on both primary and secondary data. Extensive field survey has been conducted to collect primary information regarding terrain characteristics, micro relief, slope characteristics, hydrological attributes, soil character, natural vegetation, environmental hazards. The Survey of India topographical sheets, meteorological data, agricultural production data, land use and land cover data have been collected for the analysis of geomorphological characteristics, land classification, and agricultural land use pattern.
 This study reflects the typical land characteristics of the fringe area of Chhotanagpur plateau, where some typical geomorphic attributes control the productivity of the land and also controls the socio-economic conditions of the local people. The present authors have tried to examine the typical geomorphic attributes and their effects on present productivity of the land in a micro level study, where agriculture is the main source of income.

A geospatial technique‐based site suitability analysis for construction of water reservoirs in Arsha and Balarampur Blocks, Purulia

“…Purulia has its long history of water crisis, with more than 47% of the total area considered drought prone (Mahato, 2012). The nature of water scarcity and predominance of drought make the socioeconomic life of the inhabitants in the districts vulnerable, since more than 70% of the population of the district depends on agriculture for subsistence and as their main source of income.…”

“…Moreover, poverty is not the only outcome of water scarcity, with poverty‐related migration another aspect (Black, Bennett, Thomas, & Beddington, 2011). From some areas of the district, laborers migrated permanently to Assam while from other areas they migrated seasonally to the coalfields (Mahato, 2012).…”

“…They laid emphasis only on the economic gain from such water bodies, but the ecological dimension received scant attention. The banks around bandhs were very fertile (Baker, Agrawal, & Sivaramakrishnan, 2000), set amidst a generally stony, broken, and infertile landscape, so emphasis was loaded on these pond‐side lands for agrarian economy (Mahato, 2012). As a result, the areas surrounding bandhs experienced a high rate of forest clearance.…”

“…As a result, the areas surrounding bandhs experienced a high rate of forest clearance. Contemporaneously, due to the advancement of the railways in India, a huge amount of deforestation was occurring (Mahato, 2012).…”

“…Denudation reduced rainfall as well as soil moisture. Temperatures increased and a process of desertification ultimately set in over the whole region (Mahato, 2012).…”