India, June 17 -- Every summer, as temperatures soar above 40degC across India, attention turns to heatwaves, dry spells, water shortages, and power cuts. What rarely makes its way into mainstream conversations is the slow and persistent process that feeds all these crises: land degradation and desertification. So, let us mark the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought (observed each year on June 17) by turning our attention to the threat India faces on this front.

According to the Desertification and Land Degradation Atlas of India published by Isro's Space Applications Centre, about 30% of India's geographical area - spanning 97.85 million hectares - is undergoing land degradation. Of this, a staggering 25% is experiencing des...