Land capability evaluation for land use planning using GIS

Geographical Information System (GIS) technology was used for land capability evaluation in a part of Sahaspur block of Dehradun district, Uttaranchal. River terraces, hills, mountains, piedmonts and uplifted terraces are the major physiographic units of the area and the soil series belong to four major soil orders viz. Entisol, Inceptisol, Alfisol and Mollisol. The study area is classified into six major land capability classes (II, III, IV, VI, VII, VIII). Nearly 85% of the area is found suitable for cultivation and the rest, non-arable. However, forests cover 45% of the study area. Erosion hazard, limitations of topography and soil factors are found to be the major limiting factors. The land use for physiographic soil units is also suggested for sustainable development, relating with the land capability class.