* Delivered on 13th December, 1991 during the 56th Annual Convention of the Indian Society of Soil Science held at the Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth, Dapoli, 415 712 (Maharashtra).
Successful agriculture depends on technology that maximizes rainfall use efficiency and manages the soil resources not only to meet the goal of stabilized yields but also to protect the land resource base so that inter-generational equity is attained.
The paper defines the concept of Sustainable Land Management (SLM) and proposes a framework for SLM. The first order modules are functions of disciplines, the second order modules are factor based and the third order modules are process based. The place of soils and the environment at each of these interacting levels is shown.
It is emphasized that prior to developing a framework of SLM, it is necessary to analyze each component of the framework to evaluate constraints, cause of these constraints, indicators of current unsustainability, and technology needed to attain the level of sustainability. A framework for SLM will have tremendous applications in all aspects of agricultural research and development and also in environmental assessment. To implement such an internationally acceptable framework. it is necessary that the system is back-stopped by land management research and by reliable data-bases. If well conceived and structured the SLM framework will find applications from the national policy making level to the farm level.
The success of SLM depends on each component being well identified and the realization that each may be a constraint and that success depends on a holistic approach. The soil component is as important as any ofthe other. Although effective technologies that prevent or reduce land degradation either exist or are being developed, their application is still constrained by institutional and societal barriers. The problem is aggravated by the fact that degradation control crosses all traditional boundaries and that lasting solutions must be rooted as much in social and economic reform as in effective technologies.
