Desertification in India arises from the coupling of climatic stress and human pressure. Recurrent droughts, high evapotranspiration, and erratic monsoons set the stage; overgrazing, fuelwood extraction, intensive tillage, and faulty irrigation tip landscapes into degradation. Wind and water erosion, salinization/alkalization, nutrient mining, and vegetation loss are the dominant pathways.

Regionally, the Thar (Rajasthan) faces wind erosion, dune mobility, and grazing pressure; canal command areas in Rajasthan–Haryana–Punjab display waterlogging and secondary salinity. Chambal ravines (Madhya Pradesh–Rajasthan–Uttar Pradesh) widen through gully erosion. Kachchh and North Gujarat experience aridity, saline ingress, and groundwater mining. The Deccan (Telangana, Marathwada) reports soil moisture stress and fallow expansion in drought years. In Bundelkhand, thin soils and deforestation intensify sheet erosion. Shifting cultivation with shortened fallows in parts of Northeast India accelerates soil loss. Cold desert belts of Ladakh and Lahaul–Spiti face sparse vegetation, cryo-aridity, and slope instability.

Consequences include yield decline, dust storms, falling groundwater tables, fodder scarcity, biodiversity loss, damaged infrastructure (silted tanks/canals), and livelihood precarity that drives migration and indebtedness. Social tensions rise as commons shrink.

Mitigation needs region-specific blends: shelterbelts and pasture regeneration in the Thar; drainage and conjunctive water use in canal commands; watershed treatment and check dams in plateau regions; dune stabilization and drought-resilient crops; regulated grazing and community-managed commons; and agroforestry to rebuild biomass. Early warning, land-use planning, and incentive-aligned policies (discouraging water-thirsty crops in dry zones) are crucial.