11 Unique Features Of The Indian Land  

The draft National Land Utilisation Policy, 2013, was introduced to suggest ways in which land in the country could be utilised in a better way. It also talks about the unique features of the country's land.
 
PropGuide lists 11 key features of land in India as mentioned in the policy: 

• During the period 1950-51 to 2007-08, the net sown areas in the country have increased from 41.8 per cent to 46.1 per cent. The forest areas in the same period jumped from 14.2 per cent to 22.8 per cent. Areas under non-agriculture uses, including industrial complexes, transport networks, mining, heritage sites, water bodies and urban and rural settlements, have increased from 3.3 per cent to 8.5 per cent. 

• The mining areas are about 0.17 per cent of total land in India while urban areas are about 2.35 per cent and industrial areas are much less than one per cent so far. 

• Owing to faster population growth, the per capita availability of land in India has shrunk from 0.89 hectare (ha) in 1995 to 0.27 ha in 2007-8. It is estimated that by 2030, India will become the most populous country, with 17.9 per cent of world's total population residing here. With this, the per capita land availability will reduce further.

• Currently, India produces about 245 million tonnes of food grain. It is estimated that by 2020, the demand for food grains will rise by 25 per cent to 307 million tonnes.

• India's agricultural productivity is currently the half of what it is in many other countries. 

• The country has only four per cent of the world's renewable water resources at its disposal. On the top of that, these resources are unevenly distributed over time and space. What is worse? There are challenges of frequent floods and droughts in various parts of the country. 

• A mineral-rich country, India produces 89 minerals. Of this, four are fuel minerals, 11 metallic, 52 non-metallic and 22 minor minerals.

• By 2003, the total area of the recorded forests in India was 77.47 million ha, 23.57 per cent of the country's geographic area. Of this, 51.6 per cent land is notified as reserved forests and 30.8 per cent as protected forests.

• India has 27 classified soil classes, which are considered suitable for a wide range of crops.

• One of the 12 mega-biodiversity countries in the world, comprising over 91,000 animal and 45,500 plant species, nearly 6,500 native plants in India are still used prominently in indigenous health care.

• India is one of the eight Vavilovian centres of origin and diversity of crop plants, having more than 300 wild ancestors and close relatives of cultivated plants still growing and evolving under natural conditions.

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