At least 45 per cent of Indian land is environmentally “degraded (forringet/nedslidt) due to erosion, soil acidity, alkalinity and salinity, water logging and wind erosion”, and on top of it air pollution is rising and flora and fauna is diminishing, according to a report, writes BBC online Wednesday.
The State of Environment Report is the first to be published for eight years and is the first to use satellite imagery to support its findings. It focuses on water, energy, food, climate change and urbanisation.
The report blames deforestation, over grazing, forest fires and the indiscriminate use of agro-chemicals. It also warns of a potential water crisis in the huge country, pointing out that in the past, a combination of rainfall and surface and groundwater supplies were sufficient for the population.
But now it says that rainfall has become more erratic, groundwater supplies are becoming more depleted and surface water is becoming more polluted. In the countrys north-west – including Delhi – the water table is falling by about 4 cm per year.
