(Bhagirath, January-March 2002, pp. 14–16).
Agricultural land development projects which proactively consider Land-use and livelihood diversity and connected technology conflicts can reduce damages, sustain land productivity and provide for crisis management. The diversity of land-use and livelihood is an important feature of rural survival often overlooked by the architects of development policy. In order, therefore, to achieve sustainable land development livelihoods an awareness and assessment of the nature, causes and potential effects of land use and livelihood diversification and technology conflicts should be an integral part of the development planning. The agricultural land development problems in western Thar desert crop up mainly because of intensive land use, monocultural practices, excessive irrigation and unbriddled greed for short-term agricultural gains with little care for the long-term environmental and ecological deterioration. This article summarises the need and types of land use and livelihood diversifications required for sustainable land development and rural employment generation programmes.
Agricultural land development, Land-use and livelihood diversity, Land productivity, Crisis management, Development planning, Excessive irrigation, Unbriddled greed
