Published on: March 28, 2024
LAND MANAGEMENT FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
LAND MANAGEMENT FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
- Land’s Multi-Dimensional Importance
- Land serves ecological, economic, social, and cultural functions.
- Neglecting its multi-dimensional nature leads to stress, degradation, and environmental decline.
- Global Impact of Land Degradation
- Annual losses of ecosystem services due to degradation estimated at $6 trillion globally.
- UN COP14 discussed achieving land degradation neutrality.
- IPCC’s special report highlighted the need for country-level stocktaking and actions for sustainable land management.
- FAO report emphasized the urgency of caring for land, soil, and water for long-term welfare.
- Challenges in Indian Land Management
- India faces significant land management challenges despite a small geographical area.
- About 30% of India’s land is degraded.
- Competition for land due to development targets, population growth, urbanization, and social/environmental factors.
- Current sectoral approach, knowledge gaps, short-term planning biases, and regulatory barriers hinder effective land management.
- Need for Multi-Stakeholder Platform
- A multi-stakeholder platform at district and sub-district levels is crucial for integrated land management.
- Involves farmers, policymakers, civil society, businesses, and investors.
- Article 243ZD (1) can be leveraged for district planning committees to prepare comprehensive land management plans.
- A landscape approach aids in assessing land potential, allocation, decision-making, and contributes to climate objectives, agricultural production, livelihood improvement, and biodiversity conservation.
- Institutional Support and International Insights
- Science advocates for integrated landscape management but lacks systematic institutional support.
- European Landscape Convention and UK’s Parliamentary Office highlight the importance of sustainable land management for environmental benefits.
- India’s parliamentarians can play a role in addressing emerging challenges and formulating sustainable policies involving all stakeholders.
