Study on the Relation among Agriculture and Forests of Arunachal Pradesh

Abstract

The state of Arunachal Pradesh is the northeastern most state of India. It covers the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south. It also comprises of international borders with Bhutan in the west, Myanmar in the east, and a disputed border with China in the north at the McMahon Line. The state has its agriculture as the main source of livelihood for a majority of the region’s rural population. In the last 10 years, the per capita land availability in the region has reduced by 18.4 percent and now remains a meager 0.16 ha. The reduction is attributed to the rapid increase in population and consequent fragmentation of the land. Similarly, per capita, cereal availability has also reduced by 9.4 percent in the last 10 years. The present per capita cereal availability is only 0.16 kg, thus making it very important to ensure food security in the region at any cost. Agricultural productivity in the region is not adequate to produce sufficiently for the increasing population. The average agricultural yield at present is 2.1 tonnes ha-1 (excluding the Maldives) after an increase of 8.1 percent in the last 10 years. The increase is attributed to increased use of fertilizers (69 kg ha-1, which is a 40 percent increase in the last 10 years in the region, excluding the Maldives) and the inclusion of more areas from forests into the agriculture sector. This situation has, in its turn, taken its toll by depleting and threatening the remaining biodiversity of the region.