SOIL
SURVEY DIRECTORATE OF AGRICULTURE (S.C.UNIT)GOVERNMENT OF
KERALA
Address
of area wise offices
Address
of important authorities
Programmes
Publications
The
Organisation Structure of the Department
|
DIRECTORATE
OF AGRICULTURE (S.C.UNIT)
Thiruvananthapuram
|
|
Central
Soil Anal.Lab
Principal Soil Chemist
Thiruvananthapuram
|
Southern
Regional Office
Thiruvananthapuram
|
Northern
Regional Office
Thrissur
|
|
Assistant
Director (SS)
Thiruvananthapuram
|
Assistant
Director (SS)
Thrissur
|
Regional
Soil Lab
Thiruvampady
|
Assistant
Director (SS)
Kollam
|
Assistant
Director (SS)
Palakkad
|
| |
Assistant
Director (SS)
Alappuzha
|
Assistant
Director (SS)
Malappuram
|
| |
Assistant
Director (SS)
Pathanamthitta
|
Assistant
Director (SS)
Wayanad
|
| |
Assistant
Director (SS)
Kottayam
|
Assistant
Director (SS)
Kozhikode
|
| |
Assistant
Director (SS)
Ernakulam
|
Assistant
Director (SS)
Kannur
|
| |
Assistant
Director (SS)
Idukki
|
Assistant
Director (SS)
Kasargod
|
Address
of area wise offices
DIRECTORATE
OF AGRICULTURE (S.C. UNIT)
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
SreeSabari buildings,
Aryasalai, Chalai P.O., Thiruvananthapuram
PIN 695 036
REGIONAL
OFFICES
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
SreeSabari buildings, Aryasalai,
Chalai
PO, Thiruvananthapuram
PIN 695 036
THRISSUR
Chembookavu,
Thrissur. PIN 680 020
DISTRICT
OFFICES
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
SreeSabari buildings,
Aryasalai, Chalai PO, Thiruvananthapuram
PIN 695 036
KOLLAM
Building no. 70(MC),
Polayathodu,
Kollam
PIN 691 021
PATHANAMTHITTA
Valanchuzhi,
Pathanamthitta
PIN 689 645
MAVELIKKARA
Court Road Jn,
Mavelikkara,
Alappuzha 690 101
KOTTAYAM
Collectorate PO,
Kottayam
PIN 686 002
PERUMBAVOOR
PIN 683 542
IDUKKI
Tharaniyil buildings,
Thodupuzha,
Idukki district
PIN 685 584
THRISSUR
Chembookavu,
Thrissur. PIN 680 020
PALAKKAD
Dan's Market Road,
Palakkad.
PIN 678 014
KOZHIKODE
Block B, Vth Floor,
Civil Station,
Kozhikode
PIN 673 020
MALAPPURAM
Door no 5/437.
Melmury PO
Malappuram.
PIN 676 514.
WAYANAD
Meenangadi PO,
Wyanad. PIN 673 591
KANNUR
II nd Floor, Block F
Civil Station,
Kannur
PIN 670 002
KASARGOD
Building no 21/579,
Bank road,
Kasargod
PIN 671 121
LABORATORIES
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
Central Soil Analytical Lab,
SreeSabari buildings,
THIRUVAMPADY
Regional Soil Analytical Lab,
Thiruvampady
Kozhikode dst
PIN 673 603
Address
of important authorities
Deputy Director (Soil Survey)
Southern region, Thiruvananthapuram
Thannikkad house,
Kazhakuttom PO,
Thiruvananthapuram
Contact telephone numbers
Office
of the Additional Director (Soil Survey) : 2479890
2470764
The regional offices/district offices do not have telephone
connections
Programmes
Soil
survey is the process of systematic examination, description,
classification and mapping of soils in an area so that predictions
can be made about their use and their response to various
management practices. Soil survey provides reliable data on
nature, extent and distribution of the soil resources of an
area for
1. selecting suitable and responsive areas for various agricultural
development programmes
2. delineating critical and problem areas requiring immediate
treatment measures
3. Suggesting the potential of soil resources and its alternative
use
4. Assessing the irrigation suitability of soils and
5. Classifying the land according to its capability for effective
management
Soil
survey unit was started under the Sate department of agriculture
in 1962 with two field units at Thiruvananthapuram and Calicut
and a Soil Analytical Laboratory at Konni. In 1967, three
additional field units were created to take up pre-irrigation
soil survey of the command areas of irrigation projects
and problem areas. More units were created in the subsequent
years and by the end of the 7th five year plan, 12 soil
survey field units were in operation for conducting Reconnaissance
Soil Survey, detailed soil survey, pre-irrigation soil survey,
command area survey, farm survey, catchment survey and watershed
survey. During 1991-92, the soil survey programmes were
restructured with the aim of providing the services of soil
survey field unit in all the districts. Now all the districts
of Kerala are having a field unit each headed by an Assistant
Director (Soil Survey) with supporting staff to carry out
the various soil survey programmes.
A Central Soil Analytical Lab at Thiruvananthapuram and
Regional Soil Analytical lab at Thiruvampady provides the
analytical support to the field units. All the publication
of the soil survey are undertaken at the Directorate.
NATURE
OF WORK
A few user agencies of soil survey are listed below:
1. Soil survey of farms and research stations - Kerala Agricultural
University
2. Soil survey of identified watersheds under NWDPRA - Soil
Conservation Organization
3. Soil survey of identified watersheds under WGDP - Western
Ghat Cell, Planning and Economic affairs Department
4. Aluva Municipality
5. Kerala Rural Water Supply & Sanitation Agency - World
Bank aided project of Govt. of Kerala
6. Soil survey of district farms - Department of Agriculture,
Govt. of Kerala
7. Malabar Botanical Gardens - Autonomous body of Govt.
of Kerala
8. CPCRI Research Station, Peruvannamuzhy
9. CMFRI, Vizhinjam
Types
of survey undertaken
Reconnaissance soil survey
The type of survey undertaken when only a broad inventory
of soil resources of the area is required. eg. for regional
planning- soils mapped at soil association level using small
scale map (1: 50,000 or more). An area of 30.62 lakh ha
have been covered under Reconnaissance Soil Survey in the
Sate.
Detailed
soil survey
Detailed
soil survey is the type of survey when high intensity studies
are required for preparing actual project plan for proper
land use by mapping soil at phase level using cadastral
maps in the scale of 1:8000 or larger scales. Detailed soil
survey has been completed in 17.57 lakh ha of Kerala.
Under this, soil survey of the command areas of Kuttiyadi,
Pamba, Kanjirampuzha, Pazhassi, Kallada, Periyar valley,
Chitturpuzha, Malampuzha, Chimoni Mupli, Aralam and Idamalayar
have been completed and reports furnished to the Government
(26 reports of irrigation projects). The soil survey of
all farms under the Government and Agricultural University
have been surveyed and reports and various thematic maps
furnished for deciding suitable cropping pattern and research
programmes. 38 reports have been published so far.
Panchayat
soil survey
With the restructuring of soil survey activities at district
level, emphasis has been given to panchayat soil survey.
High intensity survey is undertaken to record the type,
extent and distribution of the soils their potentialities
and limitations and problems encountered in each soil. Based
on these observations, suitable management requirement for
optimum production of each crop in different soils occurring
in the panchayat, general development requirements of the
panchayat and suggestions for improvement are included in
the report along with the various interpretative maps such
as soil and land capability map, soil conservation priority
map, present land use map, suggested land use map and fertility
map. 74 panchayat reports have been published under this
programme till now.
Survey
of watersheds
Delineation and soil survey of watersheds is another important
work undertaken by the soil survey unit. The soil survey
unit is entrusted with the task of delineating as well as
soil survey of watersheds under national Watershed development
Programme and Western Ghat Development Programme. The soil
and land resource of the watershed are assessed, the problems
that confront the area are identified, suitable remedial
measures and management as well as location specific development
programmes are suggested. 118 reports under the Western
Ghat Development Program and 161 reports under NWDPRA have
been published so far.
Special
studies
Soil survey unit has been undertaking specialized soil survey
programs as per request of user agencies. At present, the
soil survey unit is undertaking survey works for Kerala
Water Supply Sanitation in Malappuram district and Malabar
Botanical Garden, Kozhikode.
Publications
A
brief account of soil survey publications released till the
end of June 2002 are listed below
| District |
List
of reports |
| Panchayat |
District |
WGDP
watersheds |
Irrigation
Project |
Research
Station |
Other
reports |
Total |
| TVM |
11 |
0 |
15 |
1 |
5 |
21 |
53 |
| QLN |
10 |
0 |
8 |
2 |
2 |
8 |
30 |
| PTA |
5 |
0 |
12 |
1 |
3 |
1 |
22 |
| KTM |
4 |
1 |
10 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
18 |
| IDK |
0 |
0 |
7 |
0 |
1 |
5 |
13 |
| ALP |
15 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
3 |
22 |
| EKM |
2 |
0 |
11 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
21 |
| PLKD |
5 |
0 |
7 |
7 |
6 |
3 |
28 |
| TCR |
8 |
0 |
11 |
2 |
4 |
2 |
27 |
| KKD |
10 |
0 |
6 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
23 |
| WYD |
0 |
0 |
8 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
10 |
| MLP |
4 |
0 |
7 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
18 |
| KNR |
2 |
0 |
8 |
4 |
2 |
1 |
17 |
| KZD |
2 |
1 |
6 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
16 |
| GENERAL |
|
|
|
|
|
8 |
8 |
| Total |
78 |
2 |
118 |
26 |
36 |
66 |
326 |
