Sustainable Management of Soil and Environment

Fertilizers have been used extensively around the globe since the Green Revolution, due to the high subsidies. However, extensive fertilizer use exacerbates soil degradation and causes yield stagnation, and as a result threatens food security and soil sustainability, especially in developing countries. This means that sustainable soil and environmental management are vital to provide food and nutritional security for present and future generations. This has led to the International Union of Soil Science (IUSS) declaring 2015-2024 the International Decade of Soils.

This book focuses on the impact of sustainable management of soil and environment on improving the functioning of soil-ecosystems and agronomic productivity, and also discusses food security, nutrient cycling, recent advances in INM technologies, eco-friendly cultivation, agricultural practices to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as well as conservation agriculture and its effects, and strategies for soil sustainability. Offering a comprehensive overview of management in the context of the sustainability of soil and the agroecosystems that it supports, it demonstrates the options available and provides insights into restoring soil health and matching soil nutrient supply with crop demand to ensure nutritional security in an eco-friendly environment.

Ram Swaroop Meena was born into a farming family and obtained his master’s and doctorate degrees in Agronomy from the Swami Keshwanand Rajasthan Agricultural University, Bikaner (Rajasthan). Dr. Meena was awarded a Raman Fellowship from the MHRD, GOI. He completed his postdoctoral research on soil carbon sequestration under Prof. Rattan Lal from Ohio State University, USA. Dr. Meena has 9 years’ research and teaching experience at UG/PG/Ph.D. levels and is currently running 3 externally funded projects on soil sustainability, crop productivity and efficient use of resources.  He has published more than 100 research and review papers in leading peer-reviewed journals, contributed 25 book chapters and has published 4 books in India and 6 international books. He has also been involved in developing 2 textbooks for schools. He has received numerous awards, including Young Scientist, Young Faculty, Global Research, Excellence in Research, and Honorable Faculty Award. Dr. Meena is a member of 9 respected national and international societies, a member of the editorial boards of twelve peer-reviewed journals and has attended numerous national and international conferences. In addition, he coordinates training courses, meetings, workshops, and farmers fairs. 

Sandeep Kumar is working as a scientist in the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). He obtained his Ph.D. from the Choudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, India. His research interests have focused on agricultural production with environmental sustainability. He has published 3 books and 25 papers in leading national and international peer-reviewed journals and has also contributed to more than 15 book chapters. He has received numerous national awards, including Young Scientist, Best Research Scholar, and Best Master’s Thesis awards. 

Jitendra Singh Bohra is a Professor and Head of the Department of Agronomy, Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India, where he also completed his M.Sc. (Ag.) Agronomy and Ph.D. degree. He was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Hamburg, Germany.  He has received CSIR junior, senior and postdoctoral fellowships and possesses over 33 years of teaching and research experience in the area of nutrient management and farming systems.  He is in-charge of the ICAR Varanasi Centre of Integrated Farming Systems and his more-than 90 publications include books, book chapters, manuals, bulletins, reports and research papers.  As CCPI, he has been involved in mega projects, such as the World-Bank-funded Component 3 of the ‘National Agricultural Innovation Project’ and an NMSA-funded project for the Ministry and Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare.  He has participated in several national and international Conferences and travelled widely in Asia, Europe and the U.S.A. for academic purposes. 

Mangi Lal Jat is a Principal Scientist/Systems Agronomist and Sustainable Intensification Strategy lead at International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT). After obtaining PhD degree in Agronomy from ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi, he served at Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) as a Systems Agronomist for 11 years. Devoted two decades to intensively working on basic and applied science in agronomy, soils and environment and promote Conservation Agriculture (CA) based sustainable intensification in smallholder systems of Asia. His research on CA has provided scientifically sound basis and directions for promoting sustainable intensification through policy changes and led to impact at scale in Smallholder systems of south Asia. He has been on forefront in capacity building to develop new cadre of researchers across the Asian Countries. Research results of his group have been well documented in over 300 peer reviewed high impactjournal articles, book chapters, books, manuals, monographs and proceedings. He has served several reputed international and national scientific bodies and fora including FAO, International Society of Precision Agriculture in various capacities. A Fellow of National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS) & Indian Society of Agronomy, Dr Jat has several awards and recognitions to his credit including ICAR’s prestigious Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Award 2018.