Soil management practices can influence both the level and quality of soil microorganisms. The effect of deforestation and land degradation on soil microbes, soil organic carbon, soil pH, soil temp, bacterial and fungal CFU were investigated from two contrasting sites: one representing the conserved protected Sacred forest and the other highly degraded but world's highest rainfall receiving soil system of Cherrapunjee, India. Microbial diversity indices can function as bio-indicators of community stability and impact of anthropogenic stress on soil system. The two different soil types showed great variability in physical and chemical parameters including soil composition, temperature, pH, soil carbon content and water availability. The bacterial colony forming units (CFU) per gram of dry soil from the soil samples of sacred forest are found to be higher as compared to the bacterial CFU/gm dry soil from the soil samples of degraded land of Cherrapunjee. The population count of fungi is also higher in sacred forest soil than degraded land of Cherrapunjee. Chromobacterium sp. and Trichoderma harzianum are found to be indicator species of the degraded soils of Cherrapunjee which are not characterized from the protected forest.
Microorganisms, diversity, Sacred grove, degraded land, bioindicator, Cherrapunjee
