GEOGRAPHICAL AREA AND ITS EFFECTIVE UTILIZATION

N. Sasidhar
Abstract: This paper deals with how geographical area covering both land and water bodies are
presently used in India and how transformation of the entire area utilization in future, would
contribute to the prosperity without major conflict with nature / ecology.
The Geographical area of India is only 2.5% of the worlds land area with 16.7% of the global
poplation. It has only !.5% of worlds gra"ing lands with 1#% of global li$e stoc% poplation. The
forest area of India is only 1.#% of the world forest area. To enhance the prodcti$ity of the li&ited
a$ailable srface resorces' it is needless to say that both land and water areas' are to be broght nder
&lti prpose tili"ation.
(apan was also in si&ilar sitation li%e India and how (apan has o$erco&e its disad$antages is an
e)a&ple to India. (apan has high poplation density co&parable to that of India with only 12% arable
land area. *ost of the area in (apan is rgged + &ontainos co$ered with forests. The staple food of
(apan is fish and not rice. (apan has e)ploited international sea waters to &eet its food re,ire&ent.
(apan acconts for 15% of global fish catch with nearly 2% of world poplation.
Geographical area incldes both land area and srface area of water bodies. In or contry &ost of the
land area is falling nder agricltre lands or forest lands. Nearly 1!% of geographical area is water
co$ered &ostly dring &onsoon season. India does not ha$e &a-or natral water bodies . la%es other
than few &edi& si"ed bac% water lagoons. It has sbstantial area /nearly 7% of total area0 nder
natral strea&s and ri$er beds . flood pans. The &an &ade water bodies sch as tan%s and reser$oirs'
occpy less than 1% of the total area. The present area tili"ation is shown in Table11.
T2345 1 1
S.no 6lassification In &illion hectares % of total
1 Geographical area 72#.77
2 Total reported area 7!8.92 1!!
7 :orest area 6#.#6 22.6
8 2rea not a$ailable for clti$ation; 81.56
a0 3arren and nclti$able land 22.57 6.2
b0 4and nder non agricltral se 19.97 7.8
5 <er&anent pastres and other gra"ing lands 1!.91 7.6
6 4and nder &isc. tree crops and gro$es 7.57 1.2
7 6ltrable waste land 17.## 8.6
# :allow lands; 28.12
a0 6rrent fallow lands 18.76 8.7
b0 =ther fallows lands 9.76 7.2
9 Net sown area. 182.!2 86.6
1! Net irrigated area 58.57
11 Gross cropped area. 19!.76
12 Gross irrigated area 72.7#
Sorce; 2gricltral statistics at a glance' 2!!11>irectorate of econo&ics + Statistics' *inistry of
2gricltre' GoI.
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DEFINITION OF TERMINOLOGY
Geographical Area: The latest figre of geographical area for the State.?nion Territory.>istricts
frnished by the =ffice of the Sr$eyor General of India@s data. eographical area is the s& of all
land and water areas deli&ited by international bondaries and.or coastlines. !and area is the
aggregate of all srfaces deli&ited by international bondaries and.or coastlines' e)clding inland
water bodies /la%es' reser$oirs' ri$ers0. "ater area is the s& of the srfaces of all inland water
bodies' sch as la%es' reser$oirs' or ri$ers' as deli&ited by international bondaries and.or coastlines.
Reportig Area !or La" Utili#atio Stati$tic$: The Aeporting area stands for the area for which
data on land se classification of area are a$ailable.
Area %"er !ore$t$: The :orest areas are classified in to 10 Aeser$ed :orest' 20 <rotected :orest and
70 ?nclassified :orest.
Aeser$ed :orest; 2n area notified nder pro$isions of Indian :orest 2ct ha$ing fll degree of
protection. In reser$ed forests' all acti$ities are prohibited nless per&itted.
<rotected forest; 2n area notified nder pro$isions of Indian :orest 2ct ha$ing li&ited degree
of protection. In protected forests' all acti$ities are per&itted nless prohibited.
?nclassified :orest; 2n area recorded as forest bt not inclded in reser$ed or protected
category. =wnership stats of sch forests $aries fro& State to State.
It incldes all lands whether state1owned or pri$ate' and whether wooded or &aintained as potential
forest land. The area of crops raised in the forest and gra"ing lands or areas open for gra"ing within
the forests re&ain inclded nder the forest area.
Area %"er o agric%lt%ral %$e: This category incldes all lands occpied by bildings' indstries'
roads' railways' air ports.strips' nder water /e.g. ri$ers' strea&s' canals' reser$oirs' water tan%s0' etc.
which are pt to ses other than agricltre.
&arre a" U'c%lt%ra(le La"; 4and which can not be broght nder clti$ation e)cept at an
e)orbitant cost whether sch land is in isolated bloc%s or within clti$ated holdings. Aoc%y
&ontains . hills' roc% otcrops' deserts' saline lands sch as Aann of Btch' al%aline lands in ?<'
sandy coastal beeches' weed infected ra$ine lands of *<' etc fall in this category.
Per)aet Pa$t%re$ a" other Gra#ig La"$; This incldes all gra"ing lands whether they are
per&anent pastres and &eadows or not. Cillage co&&on gra"ing land is inclded nder this head.
La" %"er *i$cellaeo%$ Tree Crop$+ etc,: This incldes all clti$able land which is not inclded
in DNet area sowed@ bt is pt to so&e agricltral ses. 4ands nder 6asrina trees' thatching
grasses' ba&boo bshes and other gro$es for fel' etc. which are not inclded nder D=rchards@ are
classed nder this category.
C%lt%ra(le -a$te La": This incldes lands a$ailable for clti$ation' whether not ta%en p for
clti$ation or ta%en p for clti$ation once bt not clti$ated dring the crrent year and the last fi$e
years or &ore in sccession for one reason or other. Sch lands &ay be either fallow or co$ered with
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shrbs and -ngles which are not pt to any se. They &ay be assessed or n1assessed and &ay lie in
isolated bloc%s or within clti$ated holdings. 4and once clti$ated bt not clti$ated for fi$e years in
sccession is also inclded in this category at the end of the fi$e years.
Fallo. La"$ other tha C%rret Fallo.$: This incldes all lands which were ta%en p for
clti$ation bt are te&porarily ot of clti$ation for a period of not less than one year and not &ore
than fi$e years.
C%rret Fallo.$; This represents cropped area which is %ept fallow dring the crrent year. :or
e)a&ple' if any seeding area is not cropped against the sa&e year it &ay be treated as crrent fallow.
Net Area So.: This represents the total area sown with crops and orchards. 2rea sown &ore than
onceE in the sa&e year is conted only once.
Total Croppe" Area: This represents the total area co$ered with crops' i.e. the s& total of areas
co$ered by all the indi$idal cropsE areas sown with crops &ore than once dring the year being
conted as separate areas for each crop.
Area So. )ore tha oce: This is obtained by dedcting DNet 2rea Sown@ fro& DTotal 6ropped
2rea@.
Total C%lti/a(le Area 0 Agric%lt%re La" 0 Total C%lt%ra(le La"; This consists of net area sown'
crrent fallows' fallow lands other than crrent fallows' cltrable waste land and land nder
&iscellaneos tree crops.
Total C%lti/ate" Area; This consists of net area sown and crrent fallows.
Ara(le la": 4and clti$ated for crops li%e wheat' &ai"e' and rice that are replanted after each
har$est.
FOREST LANDS:
2t present forest areas are ser$ing the following prposes
Fabitat to flora and fana sch as wild ani&als.birds.insects' nati$e plants' etc.
Sorce of li$ely hood to the local tribes
Sorce of wild &edicinal herbs'
Sorce of fire wood' ti&ber' ba&boo' fodder' etc.
*a-or forest prodcts sch as beedi lea$es' honey' g&s' lac,er' sil% cocoons' ta&arind' etc.
<resently' the tribal are nable to sr$i$e on traditional forest prodce alone and resorting to forest
ctting for creating far& lands. *any ti&es' forests are o$er e)ploited for gra"ing and indstrial raw
&aterials casing per&anent da&age. The forests are being e)ploited by h&an acti$ity in e)cess of
its sstainable capacity. The poplation of wild ani&als is dwindling to alar&ing le$els in forests. The
forest depart&ents of both state and central go$ern&ents still i&ple&ent archaic laws and reglations
withot reaping &a)i&& prodcti$ity fro& these lands.
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The following &easres shold be ta%en on war footing to i&pro$e prodcti$ity fro& forests.
:orest co$er;
The ,ality of forests /canopy area0 is deteriorating o$er a period of ti&e de to e)cessi$e logging
acti$ity. *a-ority of or forests are shrbs and dry decidos forests located in se&i arid areas. The
tree co$er growth is slow de to shortage of soil &oistre dring dry season. The trees face water
stress dring s&&er &onths. It is $ery &ch essential that a$ailable water resorces in forest areas
are conser$ed and &ade a$ailable to bio &ass . trees growth.
It is possible to i&pro$e the grond water reser$es by constrcting contor bnds in the forest area
where$er feasible. 6ontor bnds are nearly one foot high earth bnds along the one foot contor
lines. The rain water stagnates between ad-acent contor bnds and seeps gradally in to soil' ths
increasing soil &oistre and grond water. This wold drastically i&pro$e the greenery of forests +
their bio&ass generation prodcti$ity' enhance sstainability of wild life &any folds and sbstantially
redce ri$er flooding dring &onsoon season.
Gild life;
>ring s&&er &onths' the a$ailable water sorces dry p and all the ani&als congregate near few
water holes . tan%s for ,enching thirst. Near the water holes' the wea% and calf1stage herbi$oros
ani&als beco&e easy pray to carni$oros ani&als. So&e ti&es' grown p pppies of carni$oros
ani&al also beco&e easy prey to other ani&als. <re&atre death of reprodcti$e ani&als will lessen
the poplation growth of wild ani&als. Sfficient n&ber of perennial water holes.sorces free fro&
har&fl bacteria' are to be ensred by forest officials to pre$ent e)cessi$e congregation of wild
ani&als.
Ghen wild ani&als are growing in n&ber' &ore food is re,ired in the for& of other wild ani&als to
sr$i$e. The local food sorces a$ailable in the li&ited forest area wold not be sfficient to sstain
food re,ire&ents of e)panding wild life /both herbi$oros and carni$oros0 poplation. 5)ternal
spple&entation of re,ired food is to be done by forest depart&ents. In or contry natrally dead
cattle are either bried or allowed to rot in open fields after re&o$ing the hide. 3y this disposal
&ethod' the flesh is degenerated by har&fl bacteria in to green hose gasses. This is $ery
nprodcti$e process in sage of a$ailable proteins. The prodcti$e &ethod of sing a protein is to
con$ert in to $i$acios protein at good con$ersion ratio. 2nother food sorce is or dogs /both
do&esticated and street dogs0 in cities and towns. Ghen these dogs die natrally' the dog &eat can be
sed as food to ag&ent the food sorce to wild ani&als. :or i&ple&enting these &easres' forest
depart&ents shold carry ot following tas%s.
6ollection of dead cattle and dogs fro& the cities' towns and $illages'
Separation of hide' bones' etc fro& the dead corpses in &obile $ans'
Sterili"ing the &eat by &icro wa$e heating'
*aintaining cold storages to store the &eet.
>istribtion of &eet in forests for wild life cons&ption.
Si&ilarly' when fodder shortage is faced by the wild ani&als dring s&&er &onths' dry fodder
collected fro& the agricltre lands' can be spplied to &eet their &ini&& re,ire&ents.
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The wild life propagation is se$erely restricted by e)cessi$e &ortality of cal$es and cbs /infant
&ortality0. This is de to inability of these cbs to flee.hide fro& the predator ani&als. Infant &ortality
a&ong wild life can be &ini&i"ed by pro$iding safe hiding shelters in the forests. Safe shelters are
&etallic do&es with s&all openings sch that only cbs. pppies are able to enter in to the& /not e$en
&other0. These &etallic do&es are ca&oflaged to beco&e part of natral srrondings. Generally'
when a &other ani&al gi$es birth to pppies' it will try to shift the pppies to safer hide ot sch as
borrows . ca$es. These do&e shelters ser$e the sa&e prpose as borrows . ca$es in a better way. The
cbs . pppies slip in to the cage shelters when threatened by predators and co&e ot of the do&e
shelter when &other arri$es bac%.
In or contry' the wild life ani&als /1! %gs and abo$e0 poplation is less than ten to e$ery lac%h of
h&an poplation. It is $ery precarios i&balanced sitation. If the abo$e &easres are i&ple&ented'
the wild life poplation density cold be increased by ten folds.
:orest area fencing;
:orests are srronded by h&an hebetated areas and $ice $ersa. So&e ti&es wild ani&als enter in to
h&an habitats and %ill people.cattle or da&age the crops. <eople also stray in to forests to plnder the
forest resorces nlawflly. It wold be $ery sefl if a soltion is a$ailable to these proble&s. This
proble& can be sol$ed to a &a-or e)tent by creating twenty &eter wide strip of fencing plants along
the forest bondary. There are &any nati$e fencing plants sch as bshy' thorny' hard wood $arieties
if planted in co&bination wold pre$ent trespassing fro& chic%ens to 5lephants. It wold also &a%e
h&an trespassing difficlt and detectable.
The territorial ani&als sch as wild cats' bears' wolfs' etc. try to sr$i$e in a li&ited territory by scent
&ar%ing the bondaries of its territory. It will try to protect its territory fro& intrders. >ring food
shortage periods' a stronger intrder dri$es ot the e)isting occpier fro& its territory. This will lead to
cascading effect' lti&ately leading to intrsion of ani&als li$ing in forest bondaries in to h&an
habitats. The forest bondaries . fencing cold be scent &ar%ed in dry season with rine fro&
"oo.circs ani&als sch that ani&als are scared of crossing the forest bondaries.
Tribal Gelfare;
The people li$ing in the forest areas shold be in$ol$ed in enhancing the prodcti$ity of forest lands
as e)plained pre$iosly. The e)penditre incrred on forest de$elop&ent will create necessary
e&ploy&ent for tribals till they get edcated and di$ersify their li$elihood. The tribals wold be
encoraged to grow fodder crops /inclding paddy0 in e)isting far& lands to &eet wild life needs
dring dry season and re&nerati$e price will be paid by forest depart&ent for the clti$ated fodder.
*il% collection centers in forest areas wold be discontined to discorage gra"ing in forest lands.
*il% spply. e)port to near by towns fro& forest areas shold be stopped by i&posing transport
restrictions. The tribals wold be trained and sed in a proacti$e &anner for all arond prodcti$ity
i&pro$e&ent of forest lands.
Ae1defining :orest >epart&ent responsibilities;
<resently' all erstwhile forest prodcts e)cept wild life and bio1di$ersity are clti$ated in far&s to
&eet their h&an cons&ption. The prodcti$ity . wealth created fro& the forest area which is 22% of
total area' is abys&ally low. 2t present' the forest depart&ent is ser$ing two fnctions &ainly. 10 To
police the forest areas and 20 To generate &odest inco&e fro& forests. Gradally the forest resorces
are depleting casing irre$ersibly da&age to flora and fana. The fnctions and perfor&ance of forest
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depart&ent shold be re$iewed critically and reoriented to achie$e fro& the $ast forest lands enhanced
prodcti$ity beyond traditional e)pectations. The go$ern&ent shold allot &ore fnds for forest
de$elop&ent sche&es to generate &ore wealth fro& the forest lands. :orest depart&ent shold be
transfor&ed in to a corporate . cooperati$e estate to reap high prodcti$ity fro& the $ast forest areas.
&ARREN AND UN'CULTURA&LE LAND ;
These lands are difficlt to clti$ate bt are sorce of &any constrction &aterials sch as gra$el'
sand' stones' soil' etc. These &inerals i&portance has been increasing with the boo& in the
constrction indstry.
Gra$el . &etal chips prodction is electricity intensi$e and highly pollting indstry. This indstry
cold be transfor&ed in to a cottage indstry for generating e)tra rral e&ploy&ent dring non
agricltre season. Instead of ,arrying the hills' the bolders in the agricltre lands are to be
re&o$ed and spplied to rral labor at their door steps. Ae&o$ing the nwanted stones . bolders fro&
the agricltre lands will create &ore agricltre land. The &etal chips of $arios si"es prodced by
the rral people by brea%ing the bolders wold be prchased by go$ern&ent . pri$ate agencies for
onward cons&ption. *etal chips are non perishable and can be stoc%ed in open yards. Ths seasonal
ne&ploy&ent of rral labor is sol$ed and e)tra agricltre land is created.
TOTAL CULTIVA&LE AREA:
India is blessed with $ast area of arable land /82% of its total area0' water resorces and tropical
cli&ate. The per capita a$ailability of arable land in India is &ore co&pared to that of total 2sia. India
is also blessed with tropical cli&ate to clti$ate crops throgh ot the year. The prodcti$ity of
agricltre land is low co&pared to international nor&s. So&e areas are not sitable for agricltre
de to soil proble&s which can be rectified. 3eing tropical contry' the water de&and by the crops is
$ery high. In &ost parts of India' irrigation water is re,ired throgh ot the year for clti$ating
&ltiple crops. Soil &oistre and soil enrich&ent are crcial factors for i&pro$ing the prodcti$ity
fro& agricltre land. This can be achie$ed by flly e)ploiting water resorces and in$esting &ore
fnds in soil enrich&ent.
Irrigation; The irrigation is done generally by srface canals sing ri$er water or by lift irrigation sing
grond water. The land irrigated by grond water lift irrigation e)ceeds that of srface water. The
water p&ped fro& the grond e)ceeds the total rain fall in &any parts of India. *ost of the nder
grond water p&ped goes bac% to the nder grond de to high porosity of corse soils. The
sbsidi"ed . freely spplied p&ping power is wasted with ot econo&ical sense. This type of corse
soils shold be treated with locally a$ailable blac% cotton . all$ial soils to enhance the fertility of soil
and redce e)cessi$e seepage.
In this way' the e)cessi$e seepage encontered in irrigation canals cold also be redced drastically'
by co$ering canal srface with si) inches of blac% cotton soil to fill the soil pores. This &ethod is $ery
cheep and long lasting than canal lining.
Si&ilarly' &any blac% cotton soils will not allow water to seep down and pre$ent the plant root
penetration and its aeration. These soils are to be either treated with fine sand . waste fly ash prodced
fro& coal power stations to eli&inate the disad$antages. Ths blac% cotton soils can be enriched to
enhance prodcti$ity.
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6on-ncti$e irrigation /sing both grond water and canal water0 shold be targeted for growing three
crops in a year. Ghen canal water is sed for irrigation dring &onsoon &onths' the grond water is
replenished and a$ailable for sbse,ent crops by lift irrigation.
<est control; It is often fond that crops are se$erely affected by insects. pest. The pest &enace repeats
in aggra$ated way with the se of che&ical pesticides. In &any agricltre lands srronded by
wooded areas' /e); Berala0 the pest &enace is natrally nder control withot appreciable crop
da&age. Ghen highly poisonos pesticides are sed on crops' not only har&fl pest bt also predators
of these pests perish. Ghen birds feed on poisonos dead insects' their poplation also dwindles.
Ghen pesticides seep in to grond throgh water' the benign insects which feed pon har& fll
eggs.lar$ae of nwanted pest also die lea$ing the soil de$oid of biological acti$ity. To %eep the pest
da&age nder control natrally' e$ery $illage &st ha$e a bird sanctary for pro$iding bird nesting
sanctaries and protection fro& predators sch as sna%es' falcons' etc. =nly carni$oros s&all birds
wold be gi$en shelter in these bird sanctaries to control the herbi$oros insects . pest. Generally' the
poplations of grain eating birds sch as pigeons' parrots' etc' are proliferating casing da&age to
crops. orchards. 3ird sanctaries can be established by growing sitable thorny trees and bshes for
the insect eating bird species.
*any of the crops da&aging insects are noctrnal /i.e. acti$e dring night0. Insecti$oros /insect
eating0 3ats are the natral predators of noctrnal insects. These 3ats poplation has al&ost wiped ot
fro& the agricltre land regions. It is high ti&e that artificial nesting strctres are to be installed in
&any $illage areas to create ade,ate poplation of these 3ats.
PER*ANENT PASTURES AND OTHER GRAZING LANDS ;
These lands are only 7.6% of total area. India has only !.5% of worlds gra"ing lands with 1#% of
global li$e stoc% poplation. This is a &isleading state&ent becase li$e stoc% prodction is &ainly
dependant on crop resides and crop by prodcts. The total spply of feed and fodder was straw 79#
&illion tons' green fodder 577.5 &illion tons and concentrates 82 &illion tons in the year 1997. The
fodder crop prodction e)ceeds by weight s& total of all other agricltre prodcts and all &ined
&inerals in India. 4ess than one third of feed re,ire&ents of li$e stoc% are &et fro& <er&anent
<astres and other Gra"ing 4ands at enor&os loss of green co$er in contry side. =pen gra"ing of
li$e stoc% is detri&ental to plants growth and &a%es afforesting efforts nsccessfl. =pen gra"ing .
allowing li$e stoc% otside their far&s shold not be allowed. =pen area gra"ing also cases traffic
proble&s on high ways and in cities. <er&anent <astres and other Gra"ing 4ands cold be easily
con$erted in to cattle far&s . bird sanctaries.
EFFECTIVE UTILIZATION OF -ATER AREA:
So&e ti&es' not only agricltre land' deco&&issioned reser$oirs . tan%s can be lcrati$ely con$erted
in to ne)t higher le$el sage for indstries and residential towns. In the ots%irts of Fyderabad city'
there are two old &edi& si"e water reser$oirs /i.e. =s&an Sagar and Fi&ayat sagar0 co$ering total
area of 8!!! hectares. These water storage reser$oirs constrcted nearly 9! years bac%' &eet less than
1!% of present water re,ire&ents of Fyderabad city. The near by catch&ent area of these reser$oirs
is also restricted for indstries and residential prpose other than far&s and far& hoses. These
restrictions are i&posed to pre$ent the conta&ination of water collected in these reser$oirs by sewage
and indstrial polltants. These reser$oirs cold be deco&&issioned and the reclai&ed land can be
sed for locating indstrial.co&&ercial co&ple)es and residential towns since these da&s ha$e
otli$ed their life + beco&e nsafe. Fyderabad city is being pro$ided with ade,ate water fro& other
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reliable water sorces for present and ftre needs. This wold fetch at least 1!! billion rpees to the
state go$ern&ent for spending on new infrastrctre pro-ects.
Si&ilarly' the Ni"a&sagar reser$oir lands in Ni"a&abad district of 2ndhra <radesh cold be reclai&ed
partly by redcing the water storage le$el . effecti$e da& height. Aedcing the da& height wold not
affect water spply to Ni"a&sagar irrigation syste&s. This reser$oir is nearly #! years old and not
recei$ing ade,ate water to fill the reser$oir in nine ot of ten years. The pstrea& Singoor reser$oir
is fond ade,ate to store the a$ailable water in &ost of the years. This reclai&ed land /nearly 1!'!!!
hectares0 can be sed for indstrial /S5H0 prpose or for relocating displaced poplation by new
reser$oir pro-ects.
*any ti&es' contro$ersies erpt in allocating forest lands for constrction of water reser$oir pro-ects.
da&s. It is arged that precios forest lands are sb&erged by reser$oirs. :orests and reser$oirs can
occpy sa&e area and e)ist sy&biotically. In 2&a"on Ai$er basin of Soth 2&erica' $ast areas of
fresh water inndated.sb&erged forests are e)isting. The tree species in these forests can grow p to
2! &eters height with 1! &eters deep water logging for &ore than se$en &onths in a year. The
cli&atic conditions of 2&a"on Ai$er basin are si&ilar to Indian cli&ate. It is possible to grow thic%
forests in the ri& of e)isting water reser$oirs p to for &eters water depth. New reser$oir pro-ects
cold be created with ot any loss of forest area by growing co&pensatory inndated forests in
e)isting reser$oirs.tan%s. Ths water bodies are pt to &ltiprpose prodcti$e sage.
So&e ti&es reser$oir pro-ects are a$oided since the water sb&erged area are fond to contain coal
reser$es. <resently' in1sit coal &ine gasification technology is well de$eloped to e)tract the a$ailable
coal in the for& of gaseos fel. This technology is sefl where coal reser$es are located nder sea
water' deep in ndergrond' nder ri$ers . reser$oirs. In this way' the a$ailable area can be sed for
both storing ri$er water and also coal &ining prpose.
In India' rice is clti$ated in irrigated lands on large scale. <resently' the cost of pro$iding irrigation
water to rice fields is of the order of two lac%h rpees per acre. Aice.paddy plant grows in &arshy .
water logged lands with shallow depth root penetration /nearly one foot0. It is feasible to grow three
paddy crops in a year in far&s created on rafts floating on reser$oir@s water. The reser$oir water cold
be p&ped for rice clti$ation throgh ot the year. The cost incrred wold be less than the s& of
&ar%et rates of paddy fields and the sbsidi"ed water spply cost. The dead storage reser$oir water
area can be allotted to displaced people of the reser$oir for paddy clti$ation by pro$iding barge
&onted paddy fields. Interest free loans can be pro$ided for the barge &onted paddy fields. These
paddy far&ers can also li$e in boat hoses if re,ired. Ths the re,ire&ent of additional far& land
for rehabilitating displaced poplation is sol$ed to &a-or e)tent.
2t present e$ery district' is ha$ing one &a-or . &edi& water reser$oir in India. The dead storage area
of these water bodies can be sed as district le$el air ports by sing a&phibios aero plains which can
land and ta%e off on water. Ths there is no re,ire&ent of land area for these &edi& airports and
sbstantial cost is sa$ed in creating these facilities.
*ULTI PURPOSE -ATER USE
Aenowned philosopher and great Telg poet' S&ati wrote nearly #!! years ago in his boo% IS&ati
Sata%a&J that the best place for locating a residential $illage . city is where perennial water sorce'
ban%ing ser$ices and &edical ser$ices are a$ailable. In this &odern age' ban%ing and &edical facilities
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can be easily established by people the&sel$es whereas ade,ate perennial water sorces are not
easily a$ailable e$erywhere. The &easre of well being in present age is the e)tent of rbani"ation and
the a$ailable co&forts . standard of li$ing in the cities.towns. 2de,ate piped water spply to the
people is an essential basic re,ire&ent.
Ghen water is sed for indstrial + do&estic prpose' nearly 2!% is actally cons&ed and the rest
#!% is a$ailable as waste . efflent water. 5fflent water is treated and dilted with 7!! ti&es of
natral ri$er water' to &a%e it fit again for do&estic se. Fowe$er' this efflent water can be directly
sed for irrigation after &inor treat&ent. It is &ore econo&ical to se the do&estic + indstrial
efflent water for irrigation prpose in nearby area rather than pollting the long stretch of
downstrea& Ai$er dring dry season.
Ghen big residential + indstrial towns /S5Hs0 are to be established' the re,ired water is fre,ently
planned to be broght fro& distant &a-or ri$ers at e)orbitant cost. In e$ery district' there are few
&edi& si"e water storage reser$oirs whose water is presently sed for irrigation only. It wold be
better to locate the &a-or residential + indstrial towns close to these reser$oirs. The water stored in
these reser$oirs will be first sed for the residential + indstrial prpose and the generated efflent
water after treat&ent is frther sed by gra$ity flow . by p&ping in the e)isting irrigated area. Ths
the e)isting li&ited perennial water sorces are pt to &ltiprpose sage. 2lso water spply charges
and polltion cess can be collected fro& indstries and townships as sorce of re$ene.
=nly 25% of the water resorces of the contry are harnessed till now. In India' the total indstrial and
do&estic water re,ire&ents by its people' cattle + wild life wor%s ot to e,al to already harnessed
5!! billion cbic &eters srface water resorces. Fowe$er #!% of this water will be a$ailable for
rese in agricltre. Ths the esti&ated net water re,ire&ent for non agricltre ses is only 2!%
/1!! billion cbic &eters0 of the already harnessed potential. The &ltiprpose sage of a$ailable
water is the best &ethod to establish new cities and towns with lesser infrastrctre cost in a thic%ly
poplated contry li%e India.
COASTAL VS INLAND CITIES
5nergy star$ation is defined as people li$ing in srrondings where the te&peratre is less than 2!K6
and &ore than 7!K6. Ghen natral a&bient te&peratre is not in the range of 2!KL7!K6 and
srronding te&peratre is not controlled' it is considered that energy star$ation conditions are
pre$ailing. This can be while in hose or in wor% place or in co&&ercial establish&ent or in &obile
$ehicle. The per capita energy star$ation dration in India is in e)cess of 7!%.
The a&bient te&peratre decreases by 1K6 for e$ery 2!! &eters increase in altitde. If a place is
located at higher altitde' its energy re,ire&ents for cli&ate control is less co&pared to energy needs
of a place located at lower altitde. Fowe$er it needs &ore energy for transporting goods and water
fro& lower ele$ation places. <ri&a fascia' a city located at reasonably high altitde /7!! to 12!! &
abo$e sea le$el0 is preferable if ade,ate water resorces are a$ailable withot the need of p&ping
fro& lower altitde. Nearly half of geographical area in India is located below the 2!! &eters altitde
abo$e sea le$el.
India is blessed with &ore arable land with hot dry tropical cli&ate nli%e in &any de$eloped
contries. 4ot of water is re,ired for irrigation in tropical cli&ate. The a$ailable water resorces are
-st ade,ate for its lti&ate water re,ire&ents. If ftre cities . towns are located on the sea coast'
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the water sed by the people and indstries can not be resed frther for irrigation needs withot being
p&ped to pstrea& lands. Ths additional power is needed to p&p the efflent water generated in
coastal cities for frther sage in plands irrigation. 6oastal areas are also &ore prone to flooding'
cyclones' tsna&is' hot h&id cli&ate and corrosi$e at&osphere which are not fa$orable for locating
indstrial and residential cities. In India' inland citied are preferred to coastal cities nless specific
re,ire&ent is called for.
CHANGE IN USAGE OF LAND FOR HIGHER PRODUCTIVIT1
Nearly #5% of the area is sed presently for agricltre' ani&al hsbandry and forestry. The
infrastrctre' residential and indstries occpy 7.8% of the area only. Slowly' India is transfor&ing
fro& agrarian econo&y in to indstrial econo&y which is the natral corse of any de$eloping
contry. *ore and &ore land wold be occpied by indstries' &ines' residential places sch as towns'
cities' etc. It &eans so&e of the present agricltre land needs to be di$erted to these sectors. It is not
tre that any barren + nclti$able land where$er a$ailable can be sed for these pco&ing sectors
de to following reasons.
*ines can only be located where &inerals . ores are a$ailable.
*lti prpose da& reser$oirs for irrigation and hydro electricity pro-ects can only be located
where$er it is feasible.
Indstries or indstrial towns at sitable locations
Indstries can be established with profitability where re,isite raw &aterials' s%illed &an power'
nearness of &ar%ets to sell prodcts' infrastrctre li%e roads' rail' harbor' air port' water'
co&&nication lin%s and co&&nity facilities sch as hosing' etc. are a$ailable. So&e ti&es the land
de$elop&ent cost sch as le$eling of land abo$e the local flood le$el and additional fondations in the
for& of piling and soil treat&ent wold cost nearly 1! ti&es the land ac,isition cost of an indstrial
pro-ect. If the indstry is located in an acti$e seis&ic or high gale wind "ones' additional cost will be
incrred to &eet these site specific re,ire&ents. *oreo$er' indstries and infrastrctre pro-ects' are
re,ired to co&ply stattory re,ire&ents sch as en$iron&ent and polltion control acts. It is rare to
find an ideal site for an indstry &eeting all the abo$e re,ire&ents fa$orably.
2gricltral land prices are higher in India co&pared to &any de$eloped contries. The annal land
lease . rental co&ponent is &ini&& 25% of the prodced crop $ale. :ar&ers are relctant to sell
their lands. They fear that disposing land wold depri$e the& li$ely hood in the bac% grond of
ra&pant ne&ploy&ent.
Ghene$er' an entreprener co&es forward to establish an indstry at particlar site' it is the dty of
local people and go$ern&ent' to welco&e the new indstry and negotiate a proper price for the sale of
land and co&pensation for the effected people in ter&s of cash and %ind. Aarely' the cost of land
ac,isition and co&pensation to displaced persons e)ceed 7% of installed cost of an indstrial pro-ect.
If an indstrialist correctly e$alates the site related ad$antages' it is not difficlt to pay the de&anded
price for land ac,isition for the re,ired site. If the land price is felt on higher side' the entreprener
can loo% for alternate site which is cheaply a$ailable in near by $icinity.
=nly econo&ic consideration shold be the criteria for siting any indstry %eeping aside senti&ental
and e&otional factors of sta%e holders. The entreprener &st indce the land owners and effected
poplation by offering attracti$e price and go$ern&ent shold facilitate the deal withot ta%ing sides.
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2lso local go$ern&ents need to establish transparent land ac,isition policy to pre$ent &isse on both
sides.
5$ery area has so&e natral ad$antages + disad$antages for its tili"ation. So&e of the disad$antages
cold be o$er co&e by in$esting additional e)penditre. So&e of the &ain natral factors are gi$en
below which are to be considered as ris%y and high cost ele&ents.
6yclones' typhoons' tornadoes incident areas
5arth ,a%e prone areas
Tsna&i prone area'
Fail stor& prone areas
6onta&inated grond water areas
6orrosi$e coastal at&osphere
Cery high and low a&bient te&peratre areas
>sty desert conditions'
AREA UTILIZATION PRIORITIES:
The following order of priorities shold be i&ple&ented for prodcti$e tili"ation of land . water
areas.
1. 2reas identified for rare and rich bio di$ersity and wild life.
2. 2reas occpied by historical' archeological and ancient sites . &on&ents
7. 2reas with ores.&ineral reser$es other than energy related &inerals'
8. 2reas sitable for ri$er water harnessing sch as reser$oirs' canals' hydro power stations' etc.
5. Infrastrctre pro-ects sch as roads' railway lines' aerodro&es. air strips' harbors' water
treat&ent plants' sewage treat&ent plants' $arios pipelines /oil prodcts' gas' water' etc.0'
power lines' co&&nication lines' etc.
6. :orest areas
7. Indstries inclding ther&al power stations
#. <rely residential + co&&ercial areas
9. >airy far&s' a,acltre' etc
1!. 2gricltre lands and others.
:or the potential areas falling in first for priority areas' there shold be blan%et ban in establishing
new indstries' orchards' a,acltre and big residential + co&&ercial co&ple)es. This wold
facilitate . protect these potential areas to se for the identified prpose in ftre.
3y i&ple&enting these area tili"ation priorities and nbiased land ac,isition policy' sbstantial ti&e
and in$est&ent cold be sa$ed. Transparent and effecti$e area tili"ation policies wold attract both
foreign and local capital for faster i&pro$e&ent of li$ing standards in India.
MMMMMMMMM.

Re!erece$:
General <rofile' 4and ?se 6lassification and 4and ?se <attern;
http;..en$for.nic.in.nccd.chap17.pdf
2rea definitions; http;..agricoop.nic.in.statistics.ste)ple.ht&
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Garden notes N 172; <lant strctres L roots;
http;..www.c&g.colostate.ed.gardennotes.172.pdf
I:looded forests of the 2&a"onJ http;..www.docstoc.co&.docs.#27#797.!7971183
Sb&erged in dar%ness; adaptations to prolonged sb&ergence by woody species of
2&a"onian plains. http;..aob.o)ford-ornals.org.cgi.reprint.1!7.2.759.pdf
http;..www.gtoe.de.pblicOht&l.pblications.pdf.212.Galdhoff%2!et%2!al
%2!1996'%2!5cotropica%2!2O1871156b.pdf Cale of frits and seeds of flood plain forests
of central 2&a"onia as food resorce for fish.
3le print for Goda$ari ri$er water tili"ation in 2ndhra <radesh
http;..www.scribd.co&.doc.5#796!89.34?51<AINT1:=A1G=>2C2AI1AIC5A1G2T5A1
?TI4IH2TI=N1IN12N>FA21<A2>5SF
India 1 Gorld fact boo%; https;..www.cia.go$.library.pblications.the1world1
factboo%.geos.-a.ht&l
(apan 1 Gorld fact boo%; https;..www.cia.go$.library.pblications.the1world1
factboo%.geos.in.ht&l
:loating garden clti$ation
http;..www.wagggsworld.org.en.grab.7527.7.floatingOgardens1.pdf
:loating gardens and ri$er bed clti$ation. http;..practicalactionpblishing.org.or1
wor%.p&p%inhar$est
I*odel citiesJ http;..www.scribd.co&.doc.5#7#9786.*odel16ities
#$otes: %opy and paste the lin&s in the browser if not wor&ing directly: when a lin& is found dead, try
to find out the article in 'oogle search( from the title of the article :)
This paper is written in the year *++,.
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