At a glance
- The ICAR-NBSS&LUP state soil map at 1:250,000 puts its soils in 5 orders and 117 described soil series.
- NBSS&LUP: 11.61 million ha (33.2% of the state) suffers human-induced soil degradation. Wind erosion affects 6.6 million ha (19.4%), water erosion 3.0 million ha and salinity 1.4 million ha (4.0%). Another 5.2 million ha (15.2%) is rock, salt flat or active dune, unfit for farming.
- ISRO's 2007 estimate, quoted in the State Action Plan on Climate Change: 67% of the state is affected by desertification and land degradation. Wind erosion is the largest part at 44.2%, then water erosion 11.2%, vegetation degradation 6.25% and salinisation 1.07%. This is a different study from the NBSS&LUP figures above.
- In the arid zone mapped by CAZRI (30 mapping units), Entisols cover 51.84% of the area and Aridisols 41.05%.
- About 0.208 million ha of the Indira Gandhi Canal command is waterlogged with associated salinity (2019 estimate).
Traditional soil groups
Eight groups by place and use for farming, as listed in L.R. Bhalla's Rajasthan: Ek Vistrat Adhyayan (1989). District names are those of the 1989 book; many districts have been formed from them since, and soil belts do not follow district lines.
| Soil | Where | Features | Crops |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sandy | Sandy plain of the west. Sandy: Ganganagar, Bikaner, Churu, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Barmer, Jhunjhunu. Red sandy: Nagaur, Jodhpur, Pali, Jalore and parts of Churu and Jhunjhunu. Yellow-brown sandy: Nagaur, Pali | 90-95% sand and 5-7% clay; little nitrogen and organic matter, many salts, high pH; fertile only where water is regular. A saline sub-group in low pits (Barmer, Jaisalmer, Bikaner, Nagaur) cannot be cropped: only salt-resistant grass grows | |
| Brown sandy | West of the Aravalli axis: Barmer, Jalore, Jodhpur, Sirohi, Pali, Nagaur, Sikar, Jhunjhunu; about 36,400 sq km | Fertility rises towards the east and north-east; good phosphate; pH 7.2 to 9.2 | |
| Red and yellow | Sawai Madhopur (then including today's Karauli), Bhilwara, Ajmer, Sirohi | Formed from granite, schist and gneiss; the yellow comes from hydrated iron oxide; low in humus, no calcium carbonate; sandy in Ajmer | |
| Red loamy | Dungarpur; central and southern Udaipur | From ancient crystalline and metamorphic rocks; low in nitrogen, phosphorus and humus; no kankar nodules | Maize, rice, sugarcane |
| Mixed red and black | Eastern Bhilwara and Udaipur; Chittorgarh, Dungarpur, Banswara | The red part is from granite and gneiss, the black part an extension of the Malwa plateau black soil; poor in phosphate, nitrogen, calcium and organic matter | Cotton, maize |
| Medium black | Jhalawar, Bundi, Kota (then including today's Baran) | Deep brown clay and loam; poor in phosphate, nitrogen and organic matter, enough calcium and potash | Commercial crops |
| Alluvial (kachhari) | Bharatpur, Dholpur, Jaipur, Tonk, Sawai Madhopur (then including today's Karauli) | Poor in lime, phosphoric acid and humus; small saline and alkaline patches where the water table is high; known for good yields | |
| Brown sandy alluvial | Alwar; northern Bharatpur; central Ganganagar | River-borne, so fertile; poor in lime, phosphorus and humus | Commercial and food crops; cotton and wheat in Ganganagar |
USDA soil orders
The USDA Soil Taxonomy groups soils into orders. Shares are of the area each study mapped: the arid zone (CAZRI) or the district named.
| Order (USDA) | Where | What the sources give |
|---|---|---|
| Entisols | Arid west (dune and hummocky sandy plain); also Bhilwara district, 10.32% of its area | Very weak soil development, as in sand dunes; Torripsamments are the main kind |
| Aridisols | Arid west | Mainly Cambids and Calcids |
| Inceptisols | Bhilwara district, 68.85% of its area, its largest order | RSSB's answer key (CET Graduation 2022) places it in Pali, Bhilwara and Sirohi |
| Alfisols | RPSC's answer key (RAS Prelims 2024) gives it as the dominant order of Jaipur, Dausa and Alwar | |
| Vertisols | Jhalawar (most basalt profiles of its Malwa part); Pratapgarh (with Entisols and Inceptisols); Bhilwara district, 3.69% of its area |
Agro-climatic zones and soils
The Rajasthan Agriculture Department gives the soils and main crops of each of the ten agro-climatic zones.
| Zone | Soils | Main crops (kharif; rabi) |
|---|---|---|
| IA Arid Western Plain (also Arid Northwestern Sandy Plain) | Desert soils and sand dunes, aeolian, coarse sand, calcareous in places | Pearl millet, moth bean, sesame; wheat, mustard, cumin |
| IB Irrigated North Western Plain | Alluvial deposits, calcareous, high in soluble salts and exchangeable sodium | Cotton, clusterbean; wheat, mustard, gram |
| IC Hyper Arid Partial Irrigated Zone | Desert soils and sand dunes, aeolian, loamy coarse, calcareous | Pearl millet, moth bean, clusterbean; wheat, mustard, gram |
| IIA Internal Drainage Dry Zone (also Transitional Plain of Inland Drainage) | Sandy loam, shallow; red soils in depressions | Pearl millet, clusterbean, pulses; mustard, gram |
| IIB Transitional Plain of Luni Basin (also Alluvial Plain of Luni Basin) | Red desert soils in Jodhpur, Jalore and Pali; sierozems in Pali and Sirohi | Pearl millet, clusterbean, sesame; wheat, mustard |
| IIIA Semi Arid Eastern Plain | Sierozems; alluvial in the east; lithosols in the west and north-west (foothills); brown soils | Pearl millet, clusterbean, sorghum; wheat, mustard, gram |
| IIIB Flood Prone Eastern Plain | Alluvial, recently formed, calcareous; prone to waterlogging | Pearl millet, clusterbean, groundnut; wheat, barley, mustard, gram |
| IVA Sub Humid Southern Plain | Lithosols at the foothills, alluvial soils in the plains | Maize, pulses, sorghum; wheat, gram |
| IVB Humid Southern Plain | Mostly reddish, medium texture, well drained, calcareous; shallow on hills, deep in valleys | Maize, paddy, sorghum, blackgram; wheat, gram |
| V Humid South Eastern Plain | Black soil of alluvial origin, clay loam; groundwater salinity | Sorghum, soyabean; wheat, mustard |
Soil problems and remedies
Districts in the first three rows are as in the 1989 book.
| Problem | Where | Cause | Remedy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wind erosion | Western arid plain; sand is also carried through gaps in the Aravalli into the eastern plain | Hot dry winds and dust storms before the monsoon, loss of plant cover, overgrazing; mechanised deep ploughing and a larger sown area speed up wind action | Tree belts across the wind, dune fixation by plantation, khejri as a windbreak, planned pastures |
| Water erosion | Sheet erosion on the Aravalli slopes and foothills (Sirohi, Udaipur, Alwar, Dungarpur); gully erosion along the Chambal and its tributaries (Kota, Sawai Madhopur, Dholpur) | Felling of forests, overgrazing, valra (shifting) cultivation on hill slopes in the south and south-east, ploughing not along the contour | Tree planting on slopes and river banks, controlled grazing, field bunding, contour ploughing, crop rotation, small ponds and dams to slow the run-off |
| Salinity and alkalinity | Worst in Jodhpur, Pali, Bhilwara, Jaipur, Ajmer, Bharatpur, Tonk, Alwar, Nagaur, Sirohi and Chittorgarh; the Luni basin has nearly 5,807 sq km of naturally salt-affected land, mostly sodium chloride, often with highly saline groundwater within 4 m | High evaporation, a high water table, poor drainage, saline well water for irrigation, seepage from canals and ponds | Levelling, farmyard manure, salt-tolerant crops (barley, wheat, cotton, sugarcane), green manure of guar or dhaincha, gypsum for alkaline soil in the dose the soil-test report gives |
| Waterlogging | Canal commands, mainly the Indira Gandhi Canal (IGNP) command along its Anupgarh, Suratgarh and Charanwala branches; the canal commands of Sri Ganganagar and Hanumangarh | Seepage from the canal, no natural drainage, a hard pan below, excess water in the early years, flow from higher land to low-lying land | Surface and subsurface drains; biodrainage by planting Eucalyptus, Populus, Casuarina or bamboo; gypsum on sodic soil; salt-tolerant grasses |
Desertification
Desertification means land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas, caused by climate variation and human activity, as the UN Convention to Combat Desertification defines it. Its main forms in Rajasthan: wind erosion on the Thar dunes, rill and gully erosion on parts of the Aravalli and the eastern edge of the Thar, and waterlogging and salinity in the Sri Ganganagar and Hanumangarh canal commands.
Over 30 schemes against desertification have been active for decades. Dunes have been fixed with plantations of Acacia tortilis, but these cover only part of the sands. Dunes reactivate for want of several layers of vegetation, and drifting sand uproots trees and threatens farms.
Research and soil health
| CAZRI | ICAR-Central Arid Zone Research Institute, Jodhpur |
|---|---|
| 1952 | Began as the Desert Afforestation Station at Jodhpur |
| 1957 | Expanded into the Desert Afforestation and Soil Conservation Station |
| 1959 | Upgraded to CAZRI under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research |
- Soil Health Card: launched by the Prime Minister at Suratgarh, Rajasthan, on 19 February 2015.
- Since 2022-23 it runs as 'Soil Health & Fertility', a component of Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY; PM-RKVY since October 2024).
- As of 13 March 2026, 25.89 crore Soil Health Cards had been generated across India.
Remember: often mixed up
- Three liststhe eight traditional groups, the USDA orders and the agro-climatic zones are separate schemes; do not mix their names in one answer.
- Local termsusar, rehi and namkeen mitti are saline-alkaline land; valra is shifting cultivation on hill slopes.
- Hadoti black soil'medium black' in the traditional list, 'black of alluvial origin, clay loam' in the Agriculture Department's zone V.
Test yourself: asked in exams
CET Graduation Level 2022 · Q46
In which of the following groups of districts in Rajasthan is alluvial soil mainly found?
- (1)Bharatpur - Dholpur
- (2)Banswara -Dungarpur
- (3)Kota - Bundi
- (4)Bikaner - Jaisalmer
Show answer
✓ (1) Bharatpur - Dholpur
See the full paperCET Graduation Level 2022 · Q51
In which of the following districts of Rajasthan the ‘Inceptisols soil’ is found?
- (1)Kota, Bundi and Baran
- (2)Pali, Bhilwara and Sirohi
- (3)Jaipur, Dausa and Alwar
- (4)Jaisalmer, Barmer and Bikaner
Show answer
✓ (2) Pali, Bhilwara and Sirohi
See the full paperRAS Prelims 2024 · Q5
Which type of soil is dominant in Jaipur, Dausa and Alwar districts ?
- (1)Entisol
- (2)Inceptisols
- (3)Vertisols
- (4)Alfisols
Show answer
✓ (4) Alfisols
See the full paperCET Senior Secondary Level 2024 · Q106
Given below are two statements: Statement (I): Alluvial soil is found in Western desert plains of Rajasthan . Statement (II): This soil contains enough quantity of Nitrogen but lacks in Potash and Iron. In light of the above statements,choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below.
- (1)Both Statement (I) and Statement (II) are true.
- (2)Both Statement (I) and Statement (II) are false.
- (3)Statement (I) is true but Statement (II) is false.
- (4)Statement (I) is false but Statement (II) is true.
Show answer
✓ (2) Both Statement (I) and Statement (II) are false.
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