A CORRESPONDENT
AZARA: Gauhati University Vice-Chancellor Prof Nani Gopal Mahanta on Monday stressed the importance of soil conservation, landscape restoration and ecological resilience while addressing the inaugural session of the 14th Eastern Himalayan Naturenomics Forum hosted by the university.
Mahanta called for a shift towards ecological restoration and improved soil health, warning that heavy rainfall could wash away fertile soil built over hundreds of years. He highlighted the link between hills, forests, agricultural land, wetlands and rivers, noting that soil erosion in the hills affected downstream rivers, farmland and settlements. He also called for integrated land and water management, pointing out that nearly 40 per cent of Assam's geographical area was vulnerable to floods.
He highlighted traditional practices such as the Apatani community's Aji-Ni integrated rice-fish farming system in Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland's nearly 500-year-old Zabo water-management system as examples of sustainable resource management.
Assam Agricultural University Vice-Chancellor Prof Dipjyoti Rajkhowa called for greater emphasis on ecological restoration across the Northeast and the Himalayan region amid the growing climate crisis. The inaugural session also featured addresses by Adrit Mishra of Tata Starbucks India, Dr Meg Lowman of the Tree Foundation and Vaswatii Sarmah Barthakur of TSAT. The forum witnessed the release of Wild Plants of Assam-I: A Pictorial Guide, authored by Dr Jintu Sharma, Dr Dipankar Bora and Niku Das.
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