Sumit Rai

• PHD
• Researcher at GB Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development

The loss of soil due to erosion is one of the most critical land degradation issues globally, representing a vital asset for both the economy and the environment. To effectively manage and regulate such a global issue, it is imperative to estimate the loss. With

Microbes and their metabolic activity are crucial for a healthy and functioning soil. The rhizosphere, where plant roots and microbes mingle, is a bustling hub for nutrient cycling, energy flow, and microbial activity. Sustainable farming prioritizes nurturing these rhizospheric processes. Biofertilizers, including symbiotic and nonsymbiotic microb...

The current study was conducted at the different villages of the Arajiline block of Varanasi district, Uttar Pradesh, India during November, 2022–June, 2023 to evaluate the variability of soil properties and nutrient indexof soils. The random sampling technique was used to collect 40 soil samples at different locations with the help of GPS at 0–1...

This paper explores the integration of robotics in aquaculture practices to achieve sustainable seafood production, thereby enhancing global food security. With the increasing demand for seafood and the challenges posed by overfishing and environmental changes, innovative solutions are required to ensure a consistent supply of high-quality seafood....

Soil represents a critical element of plant existence, ranking prominently among the five essential elements. When soil quality declines, it adversely impacts crop productivity. In the present research, the emphasis was placed on conducting a physicochemical analysis of soils in various villages within the Pendhurti block of Visakhapatnam district....

Spanning over ten millennia, the history of agriculture offers an authoritative account of the innovations and advancements underpinning the development of agricultural systems and practices across civilisations. From the transition of nomadic hunter-gatherer tribes towards the cultivation of crops in the fertile crescent of Mesopotamia to the larg...

Mountains the most significant agroecosystems that directly or indirectly support human life. The areas surrounding the hills are abundant in biodiversity and have enormous potential for sustaining Indian agriculture. It has been widely recognised that the ecological fragility and sensitivity of the Himalayas to climatic aberrations, topography, pe...

The Himalayan region is one of the planet’s most distinctive mountain ecosystems as a result of its geography, altitude, and biological diversity. Mountain ecosystems throughout the world are being affected by overuse of resources, widespread land conversion, and climate change. Despite their rich biodiversity and diverse ecosystems, mountains are...

Technological innovations can play a crucial role in this transformation. Advances in precision agriculture, renewable energy, and digital technology can make farming practices more efficient and less damaging to the environment. Such technologies need to be affordable and accessible, especially for small-scale and marginalized farmers, to ensure i...

The rapidly evolving landscape of agriculture faces myriad challenges, including pests, diseases, and environmental factors that jeopardise global food security. The urgency of these challenges necessitates innovative plant protection strategies that are both effective and environmentally sustainable. This review offers a comprehensive examination...

Soil a significant carbon sink, plays a pivotal role in mitigating climate change. This review underscores the potential of soil amendments for enhancing carbon sequestration, focusing on the intricate relationship between these amendments and soil microbial communities. Soil amendments, ranging from biochar and organic compost to mineral additives...

The review titled "Soil Science and Sustainable Farming: Paving the Way for Food Security" explores the critical role of soil science in achieving sustainable agriculture and ensuring global food security. The review focuses on key aspects of soil science that contribute to sustainable farming practices, including soil health assessment, soil manag...

Environmental sustainability is a critical concern for the well-being of future generations. Within the realm of sustainability, soil conservation plays a crucial role in preserving Earth's vital resource and maintaining the balance of ecosystems and agricultural productivity. This review explores the importance of environmental sustainability and...

Understanding the effects of artificial light spectra on plant physiological processes and secondary metabolism is critical for optimizing plant growth and productivity, particularly in controlled environment agriculture. This review synthesizes the current knowledge on this topic, exploring the fundamental principles of light spectra, their impact...

Soil erosion is one of the major factors affecting sustainability of agricultural production in watershed. The objective of this paper is to estimate soil loss using the universal soil loss equation (USLE) model and GIS and to suggest soil conservation practices in Moridhal watershed. Soil loss was estimated by USLE. In addition, measurements of ra...

Assessing soil fertility is crucial for developing effective soil management strategies that can enhance soil health, increase crop productivity, and promote sustainable agricultural practices. The current study was conducted to assess the soil fertility index and, to prepare a soil fertility zonation map using combine fuzzy and analytical hierarch...

Millets are a group of small-seeded cereal grains that are highly nutritious and drought-tolerant. They have been traditionally grown and consumed in many parts of the world, particularly in Asia and Africa. However, in recent years, there has been a decline in millet cultivation and consumption due to the shift towards more profitable and higher-y...

:Millets are a group of small-seeded cereal grains that are highly nutritious and drought-tolerant. They have been traditionally grown and consumed in many parts of the world, particularly in Asia and Africa. However, in recent years, there has been a decline in millet cultivation and consumption due to the shift towards more profitable and higher-...

To get the most out of geographical data, people are being encouraged to use open-sourceOpen-source data and softwareSoftware. Freely available Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) software is making rapid progress. These software’sSoftware can be used to look at various properties that a satellite-based data, and other geog...

With increasing urbanization, industrialization and adaptation of modern agricultural practices, soil contamination has become a prime concern. Soil health is crucial for the health of environment, ecosystems, world economy and for human population as well, but due to various natural and anthropogenic activities soil health gets depleted that ultim...

Aims: To elucidate the impacts of fluorine contamination in soil at various levels on soil enzymatic activities, as well as the effects of adding biochar made from sugarcane bagasse and modified with alum and phosphoric acid to the substrate to reduce the deleterious effects of fluorine. Study Design: The pot experiment was carried under factorial...

Phosphorus is the second most important plant nutrient after nitrogen that is critical for plant growth, it contributes up to about 0.2% dry mass. It can become deficient in different agro ecological conditions. In soil, it may be present in relatively large amounts, but it is one of the most difficult nutrients for plants to acquire. Much of it is...

A field experiment was conducted to assess the effect of varied levels of nitrogen and cow urine on rice crop during kharif season of 2009, laid out under randomized block design having three rep-lication with the six treatment combinations as T 1 = NPK (120:60:60 kg ha-1), T 2 = NPK (120:60:60 kg ha-1 + cow urine), T 3 = NPK (100:60:60 kg ha-1 + c...

Change in climate directly effects on the agricultural ecosystem that results in changing agricultural climatic elements such as temperature, precipitation and sunlight. The impacts of climate change on global food system, nutrition and health will depend on a variety of environmental factors. Due to continuously increasing global temperature, the...

ABOUT SOIL MICROBIAL STRATEGIES FOR HIMALAYAN ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION

Eco-restoration initiative work in the high altitude Dayara pastureland (3501 m) from the Indian Himalayan Region has been considered to be one of the successful field demonstration against both natural and anthropogenic degradation. The present study therefore attempts to assess the implications of entire eco-restoration model as practiced by Depa...

As most of the natural habitats are presently facing consistently increasing anthropogenic pressures alongside environmental changes on these habitats and their environmental constituents including water, air, soil, biodiversity, etc. Every habitat possesses its unique set of inter-relational physical, biological and social characteristics. Periodi...

We are living in the era of expeditiously increasing population and Industrialization and water is used in almost all industrial sectors such as food, pharmaceutical, metallurgy, chemical, textile industry and leather industry etc. which produces different kind of effluent. There are several methods used for removing pollutants from wastewater, amo...

A high soil organic matter content is synonymous with high-quality agricultural soils, as it affects many soil processes such as microbial activity, nutrient storage and release, water retention and soil aggregate formation. Due pressure on agricultural intensification with improved and science-based technology imposed a challenge to increase agric...

The traditional foods and beverages are an indicative of the simplicity and uniqueness of the life of tribal people living in close proximity of nature as well as each other. One such community is the Bhotiya tribe of Uttarakhand residing in the high altitude Indian Himalayan Region, known globally for its ethnic knowledge and traditional practices...

Plants can be used in the cleanup and prevention of environmental pollution. This relatively new and green technology that uses natural processes to break down, stabilize, or accumulate pollutants. Phytoremediation-related processes might amend the situation or chemical makeup of contaminants. Multidisciplinary studies will help to develop a better...

Biochar is used as soil amendment and soil conditioner that can be used for enhancing soil water storage which may increase soil fertility and sustain crop production. The main objective of this review is to emphasise the potential effects of biochar in alleviating soil moisture stress or drought condition and future prospect of the role of biochar...

The present study attempts to assess impact of changing socio-economical and environmental factors affecting yield of rice, wheat and madua, 3 traditional crops of central Himalaya on a district level spatial scale having objectives : (1) To quantify the critically low yield limits of crops and associated critical limits of significant factors (2)...

During first green revolution, excess use of agrochemicals adversely affects natural resources and ecosystem. Therefore we must have to go for sustainable agriculture to conserve and protect our resources and ecosystem. For this vermiwash is emerging as important potential tool. Vermiwash is a brown coloured, odourless, liquid biofertilizer, which...

Among 181 countries of the world, India ranks 41st with regard to moisture stress. Under net cultivated area more than 60% falls under dryland condition and more than 30% of the area faces insufficient rainfall problems. To overcome this moisture stress, Hydrogel may prove as a practically convenient and ecofriendly feasible option to achieve the g...

During first green revolution, excess use of agrochemicals adversely affects natural resources and ecosystem. Therefore we must have to go for sustainable agriculture to conserve and protect our resources and ecosystem. For this vermiwash is emerging as important potential tool. Vermiwash is a brown coloured, odourless, liquid biofertilizer, which...

The geographic context is essential both for environmental research and for policy-oriented resource management. Geographic information systems are as a result increasingly important computing applications in this domain, and an understanding of the underlying principles of geographic information science is increasingly essential to sound scientifi...

Today, due to the constraint in availability of the freshwater for irrigation, waste water especially sewage water is being used for irrigation of agriculture fields. Experiment was conducted form crop cultivation field by using sewage water. These fields were irrigated with sewage waste water. Use of the domestic waste water with fertilizers has s...

A field experiment was conducted during Kharif season (2010) to find out the effect of integrated use of urea, zinc, poultry manure and Azotobacter on physico-chemical properties, available NPKS content of soil under rice crop (Oryza sativa L.). The experiment was laid out in Randomized Block Design (RBD) during kharif seasons with seven treatments...

A pot experiment was conducted in the Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Institute of Agricultural Sciences B.H.U., Varanasi, India during kharif season of 2012 to investigate the efficacy in enhancing uptake of nutrients and yield of rice crop grown in an alluvial soil. The treatments comprised of four levels of rice husk bioch...

A field experiment was conducted during kharif season of 2013 to find out the effect of mulching and NPK levels on pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) in bael (Aegle marmelos) based agri-horti system under rainfed condition of Vindhyan region. There were twelve treatment combinations comprised of three levels of mulching (no mulch, wheat straw mulch...

Proper orientation of plants in the field and management of soil moisture for appropriate utilization of land, water, fertilizer, herbicides and environmental resources plays a significant role in the optimum development and functioning of vital plant organs. Water is essential for the maintenance to tur-gidity, absorption of nutrients and the meta...

A field experiment was conducted during rabi season (2011-12) to find out the effect of different N levels with and without P and K on physico-chemical properties, of soil under mustard crop (Bras-sica juncea L.). There were twelve treatments comprised three levels of nitrogen (0, 80 and 120 kgha-1) and one level of phosphorus and potassium (each 5...