New Delhi, Nov. 5 -- The Wastelands Atlas 2019 has estimated the spatial extent of wastelands for entire country to the tune of 55.76 million hectares or 16.96 per cent of geographical area of the country i.e. 328.72 million hectares for the year 2015-16.
This is as compared to 56.60 million hectares (17.21 per cent) in the year 2008-09. During this period 1.45 million hectares of wastelands are converted into non-wastelands categories.
There is a net conversion of 0.84 million hectares (0.26 per cent) of different wasteland categories in the country during 2008-09 to 2015-16. A reduction in wasteland area was observed in the categories of land with dense scrub, waterlogged and marshy land, sandy areas, degraded pastures and grazing lan...