India’s Tired Soil: Widespread Nutrient Depletion Threatens Agricultural Sustainability
A comprehensive soil assessment under India's Soil Health Card programme reveals widespread depletion of key nutrients including nitrogen, organic carbon, phosphorus, and potassium, across most states. This nutrient imbalance, driven by decades of chemical fertilizer dependency and monocropping, has degraded soil health and threatens future food security. Some regions show resilience with organic practices, but national efforts to heal soils remain insufficient.
The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) recently analyzed over 1.3 crore soil samples from all Indian states collected under the Soil Health Card (SHC) programme between 2023 and 2025. Findings show 64% of soils are low in nitrogen, nearly 50% lack sufficient organic carbon, 42% are deficient in phosphorus, and 14% lack potassium. This reflects long-term soil exhaustion from heavy reliance on chemical fertilizers such as urea, DAP, and NPK, which while boosting short-term productivity, degrade the living soil matrix by killing microbes and burning organic matter. Karnataka exemplifies regional disparities, with over 90% nitrogen deficiency in dry inland districts, while coastal areas with traditional organic practices maintain better soil quality. Similar patterns of degradation appear nationwide—in Punjab and Haryana from intensive irrigation cycles, in Rajasthan and Gujarat through organic carbon loss, and in eastern states from deforestation and erosion. Despite the large-scale distribution of over 25 crore Soil Health Cards since 2015, uptake of organic alternatives and soil restoration remains limited. Fertilizer use has tripled, creating a harmful cycle that acidifies soils and contaminates water sources. Initiatives like Andhra Pradesh’s Community Managed Natural Farming and Sikkim’s organic state status illustrate potential recovery strategies, emphasizing composting and crop rotation over chemical inputs. Experts call for government-led sensitization to promote balanced soil nutrition. The report warns that ignoring soil degradation jeopardizes climate resilience, water retention, and agricultural productivity, urging a shift from extraction to renewal for India’s agricultural future.
