Question.
What is shifting cultivation? What are its disadvantages?
( Chapter - 4 Agriculture, Cass 8 NCERT Resources and Development ( Geography) )
Answer.
Shifting cultivation is also known as "slash and burn" agriculture because it involves clearing forest to grow crops and burning it to use the ashes to increase soil fertility. The important crops of Shifting cultivation( Jhum) cultivation are maize, yam, potato, and cassava.
Shifting cultivation is a type of primitive subsistence agriculture and is practiced in densely forested areas such as the Amazon Basin, tropical Africa, part of Southeast Asia, and Northeast India.
Shifting cultivation completely depends on the local climate and natural fertility. There is minimal use of technology and the product is used for subsistence.
After cultivation for two to three agricultural years, the soil loses its fertility, then the land is abandoned and other forests are cleared for cultivation.
Since the shifting agricultural areas are areas of heavy rainfall, there is rapid regeneration of natural vegetation on the abandoned land.
Disadvantages of shifting cultivation:
The following are the disadvantages of shifting cultivation -
This leads to deforestation, soil erosion, and soil erosion, and causes huge damage to the environment.
Due to increasing population pressure on land, shifting cultivation is not a sustainable practice in today's world.
You may like also:
ConversionConversion EmoticonEmoticon