Abstract
The Southwest Birbhum District (SWBD) is socio-economically and culturally a rural, backward area. As a consequence of the combined effect of poor physical set-up and very slow rate of socio-economic, cultural and technological evolution, land use characteristics in the study area remain more or less stagnant with some areal interchange among broad land use categories. However, there have been occurring micro-level changes in land use techniques and practices. There has been occurring proliferation of some profit-oriented, illegal, unscientific and unsustainable land use practices at the cost of valuable natural resources which would otherwise be utilised in a scientific way and thus would be sustainable to the regional economy, society and environment. Some of these activities are illegal coal mining activity, illegal coke factory, brick kiln and poppy seed cultivation and so on.
In this context, the present study aims to find out the regional specificities of the study area, changing pattern of land use practices in the study area, the physical and anthropogenic driving forces behind land use changes and to suggest some remedial measures.
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