Study Reveals Over 3.4 Lakh Hectares of Cultivable Waste Land in Meghalaya

Meghalaya has over 3.4 lakh hectares of cultivable wasteland, covering about 15.2% of the state, a satellite‑based study shows. The research, published in the Journal of Geography, Environment and Earth Science International, puts the total at 3,40,673.36 hectares ready for agricultural reclamation and land‑use planning. Sparse scrubland dominates the map with 2,06,595.18 hectares (60.64% of the identified area), followed by dense scrubland at 99,488.89 hectares. Shifting cultivation zones account for 34,331.34 hectares, while grasslands and grazing lands make up just 257.94 hectares (0.08%). The work was carried out by Ronak Meena, Chandan Goswami, C P Suresh and Akmaul Hoque of the Department of Horticulture, North‑Eastern Hill University, Tura, together with the North Eastern Space Applications Centre, Umiam. They used multispectral LISS‑IV imagery from 2025‑26 to classify the land into four types and assigned reclamation priority scores: sparse scrubland 95, dense scrubland 80, shifting cultivation 60, grasslands 25. The classification achieved an overall accuracy of 86% based on 200 reference samples, with 172 correctly classified. Researchers caution that the map does not guarantee immediate suitability for farming; soil, slope, water, access and economic factors still need field verification. They say the data can serve as a baseline for sustainable land‑use planning, resource management and future agricultural development.

Context

The study highlights how remote sensing can pinpoint under‑used land, offering states a tool to balance food security with environmental protection. It also stresses that any reclamation must respect the ecological role of scrub vegetation and the livelihoods tied to shifting cultivation.