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Quick recap: soils and natural vegetation of India on one page

Soils and natural vegetation of India · Quick recap · Fact-checked on · how we check

Written with AI from the sources listed at the bottom of this page, then fact-checked by a separate AI.

All four parts condensed for quick revision: soil formation and the major soil groups; other soils, degradation and conservation; the natural vegetation types; and forest cover, forest law and people's movements.

This chapter follows one chain: rock and climate make soil, soil and rainfall decide natural vegetation, and people decide how much of that vegetation survives. Parts 1 and 2 cover the eight soil groups of ICAR, soil degradation and conservation; Part 3 covers the forest types from rainforest to mangrove; Part 4 covers how forests are measured and protected. Prelims questions come mostly from three places: what each soil is rich and poor in, which forest type grows where, and the definitions, dates and numbers of forest policy.

Part 1, soil formation and the four major groups: soil forms from parent rock by weathering, shaped by climate, relief, living things and time, and is layered into A, B and C horizons above bedrock. alluvial soil, about two-fifths of India, is transported by rivers; khadar is the newer, more fertile flood-plain alluvium and bhangar the older, with kankar; it is rich in potash and poor in phosphorus. black soil (regur) forms from Deccan Trap basalt, holds moisture, cracks when dry and suits cotton; it is poor in nitrogen, phosphorus and organic matter. Red and yellow soils lie on crystalline rocks and owe their colour to iron. laterite soil forms by intense leaching under heat and heavy rain, leaving iron and aluminium oxides, and is used for building blocks.

Part 2, the other soils and their care: arid soils of western Rajasthan are sandy, low in humus and have kankar below. saline and alkaline soil (reh, kallar, usar) forms through evaporation in dry areas, sea water in deltas or over-irrigation without drainage, and is reclaimed with gypsum. Peaty soils are waterlogged and rich in organic matter; forest and mountain soils are acidic high up and fertile in valleys. soil erosion takes the form of sheet, rill and gully erosion, as in the Chambal ravines, and wind erosion in the dry west. ISRO's atlas put about 29.7 per cent of India under land degradation in 2018-19, and India aims to restore 26 million hectares by 2030. Contour ploughing, terraces, shelter belts and watershed planning conserve soil; the Soil Health Card scheme began in 2015, and World Soil Day is 5 December.

Part 3, natural vegetation: rainfall decides the main types, and height and soil add more. Tropical evergreen forest needs over about 200 cm of rain and grows on the western slopes of the Western Ghats, in the north-east and in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands; semi-evergreen forest fringes it. tropical deciduous forest is the most widespread type: moist deciduous (about 100–200 cm) with sal in central and eastern India and teak in the Peninsula, and dry deciduous (about 70–100 cm) with tendu and palas. Thorn forest covers the dry north-west below about 70 cm. In the Himalaya, sal foothills give way to oak, then conifers such as deodar, then alpine meadows; the high southern hills carry the shola. The mangrove forests line tidal coasts, the largest being the Sundarbans.

Part 4, forest cover and conservation: the Forest Survey of India reports every two years. forest cover is land of one hectare or more with canopy above 10 per cent, whatever its ownership; tree cover and recorded forest area are separate measures. ISFR 2023 put forest cover at about 21.76 per cent and tree cover at about 3.41 per cent of India, about 25.17 per cent together, with Madhya Pradesh largest by area. The National Forest Policy 1988 aims at one-third. The 42nd Amendment (1976) moved forests to the Concurrent List and added Articles 48A and 51A(g); the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, amended in 2023, requires central approval to divert forest land. People's efforts include the Chipko movement (1973), Appiko (1983) and Joint Forest Management (1990), and the Green India Mission supports India's carbon-sink pledge.

Soils and natural vegetation of India at a glance
PartCore contentMost-tested facts
1. Soil formation and major groupsSoil profile; alluvial, black, red and yellow, lateriteAlluvial: rich in potash, poor in phosphorus; black: from Deccan basalt, cotton; laterite: leaching, building blocks
2. Other soils and conservationArid, saline, peaty, forest soils; erosion; desertification; conservationGypsum for sodic soils; Chambal gully erosion; about 29.7% degraded (2018-19); Soil Health Card 2015
3. Natural vegetationEvergreen, deciduous, thorn, montane, mangroveDeciduous most widespread; sal vs teak; sholas in southern hills; Sundarbans largest mangrove
4. Forest cover and conservationFSI and ISFR; policy and law; people's movementsForest cover 21.76%, with tree cover 25.17% (ISFR 2023); one-third target (1988); 42nd Amendment; Chipko 1973, Appiko 1983, JFM 1990

Putting it together: soil and forest rise and fall together. Bare slopes lose soil; lost soil cannot carry forest; and land without cover slides towards degradation and desertification. That is why the same tools, from terraces and shelter belts to Joint Forest Management, appear in both halves of the chapter. For revision, keep three lists sharp: what each soil is rich and poor in, which forest grows at what rainfall and where, and which definition, date or number belongs to which forest law, report or movement.

Exam traps

Recap

Practice questions

Q1. Consider the following statements about the black soils of India:
1. They develop mainly from the basalt of the Deccan Traps.
2. They are generally rich in phosphorus and nitrogen.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only
  2. 2 only
  3. Both 1 and 2
  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Show answer

Answer: A. 1 only

Only 1 is correct. Black soils are poor in phosphorus, nitrogen and organic matter (and rich in lime, iron, magnesia and potash), so statement 2 is wrong; that rules out '2 only', 'both' and 'neither'.

Q2. Which one of the following is commonly used to reclaim sodic (alkaline) soils?

  1. Urea
  2. Gypsum
  3. Potash
  4. Rock phosphate
Show answer

Answer: B. Gypsum

Gypsum supplies calcium that replaces sodium in sodic soils. Urea and potash are fertilisers that supply nitrogen and potassium, and rock phosphate supplies phosphorus; none of them removes sodium.

Q3. The ravines of the Chambal valley are an example of:

  1. Sheet erosion
  2. Gully erosion
  3. Wind erosion
  4. Coastal erosion
Show answer

Answer: B. Gully erosion

Running water cutting deep channels into soft alluvium has turned the Chambal tract into gullied badlands. Sheet erosion removes a thin even layer, wind erosion acts mainly in the dry west, and coastal erosion is caused by waves.

Q4. Which one of the following forest types covers the largest area in India?

  1. Tropical evergreen
  2. Tropical deciduous
  3. Montane
  4. Littoral and swamp
Show answer

Answer: B. Tropical deciduous

Tropical deciduous (monsoon) forest is the most widespread. Evergreen forest needs over about 200 cm of rain and is confined to the wettest areas; montane forest is limited to the mountains; littoral and swamp forest to coasts and deltas.

Q5. Consider the following pairs:
1. Shola – Nilgiri hills
2. Bugyal – Uttarakhand
3. Bhitarkanika – West Bengal
Which of the pairs given above are correctly matched?

  1. 1 and 2 only
  2. 2 and 3 only
  3. 1 and 3 only
  4. 1, 2 and 3
Show answer

Answer: A. 1 and 2 only

Sholas grow in the high Nilgiri, Anaimalai and Palani hills, and bugyals are the alpine meadows of Uttarakhand. Bhitarkanika is a mangrove forest in Odisha, not West Bengal, so every option with pair 3 is wrong.

Q6. According to the India State of Forest Report 2023, the total forest and tree cover of India is about what share of its geographical area?

  1. About 15 per cent
  2. About 21 per cent
  3. About 25 per cent
  4. About 33 per cent
Show answer

Answer: C. About 25 per cent

ISFR 2023 put forest and tree cover together at about 25.17 per cent. About 21 per cent is close to forest cover alone (21.76 per cent), 33 per cent is the target of the 1988 policy, and 15 per cent is far too low.

Q7. Consider the following statements:
1. Article 51A(g) of the Constitution makes it a Fundamental Duty of citizens to protect and improve the natural environment including forests.
2. 'Forests' was moved to the Concurrent List by the 44th Amendment Act, 1978.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only
  2. 2 only
  3. Both 1 and 2
  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Show answer

Answer: A. 1 only

Only 1 is correct. Forests were moved to the Concurrent List by the 42nd Amendment Act, 1976, not the 44th, so statement 2 is wrong and '2 only', 'both' and 'neither' are ruled out.

Q8. The Appiko movement, a forest conservation movement modelled on Chipko, began in which of the following regions?

  1. Chamoli district of Uttarakhand
  2. Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka
  3. Bastar region of Chhattisgarh
  4. Silent Valley in Kerala
Show answer

Answer: B. Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka

Appiko began in 1983 in Uttara Kannada in the Western Ghats of Karnataka. Chamoli is where Chipko began in 1973; Bastar and Silent Valley are not where Appiko started.

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