Can Farmers be Economically Sustainable through Reclamation of Degraded Soil

Soil degradation is responsible for converting fertile agricultural lands into unproductive barren lands reducing productivity causing economic loss to the farmer and food insecurity. Degradation of land in any form diminishes the area of quality land available for agriculture resulting in greater yield variability, and thus, greater costs to risk-averse marginal farmers. Soil alkalinity is one such major form of degradation and causes upto 84.10 per cent of yield loss depending on intensity. In this context, the study examines the economic sustainability of farmers through soil reclamation. Though the cost of cultivation is increased due to adoption of reclamation, the economic loss due to alkalinity can be reduced by around 52 per cent and the net returns can be increased by around 1.5 per cent by reclamation. Investment on land and water must be viewed as investment on sustained food security, income, prosperity and environmental health. In this study salinity and alkalinity are used interchangeably.