When was the ‘National Wasteland Development Board’ established for the development and conservation of wasteland and its afforestation? (RJ Supervisor 2012)

✅Explanation: The National Wasteland Development Board (NWDB) was indeed established in 1985. Its primary goal was to address the issue of wasteland degradation and promote sustainable land management practices across India.

🔑Key Points::
-The National Wasteland Development Board (NWDB) was set up in the year 1985 under the Ministry of Environment and Forests.
-The principal aim of bringing wastelands in the country into productive use through a massive program of afforestation and tree plantations.
-In July 1992, the National Wasteland Development Board was reconstituted and placed in the newly created Department of Wasteland Development under the Ministry of Rural Development.
-Subsequently, the Department of Wasteland Development was renamed as Department of Land Resources vide Gazette Notification dated 09-04-1999.
-Consequently, on the creation of this Department, 32 posts both Technical and General, were transferred from the Ministry of Environment and Forests to the Department of Land Resources.
-This Board was established mainly to tackle the problem of degradation of lands, restoration of ecology, and to meet the growing demands of fuelwood and fodder at the national level.

🔴Additional information::
-Recently, the Ministry of Rural Development has released the fifth edition of Wastelands Atlas (2019).
-It has been prepared by the Department of Land Resources (Ministry of Rural Development) in collaboration with the National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), Department of Space.
-Significance of Wasteland Atlas
-Unprecedented pressure on the land beyond its carrying capacity is resulting in the degradation of lands in the country.
-Therefore, robust geospatial information on wastelands will help roll back the wastelands for productive use through various land development programs.

🔑Key Points::
-A reduction in the wasteland area was observed in the categories of land with dense scrub, marshy land, sandy areas, and degraded pastures.
-The wastelands have undergone a positive change in the states of Rajasthan, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Mizoram, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, and West Bengal.
-The majority of wastelands have been changed into categories of croplands, plantation, and industrial areas.