Soil Health Card

Context: On the occasion of World Soil Day, Soil Health Card mobile App has been launched by the
government to help the farmers.

Key facts: The app will benefit field-level workers as it will automatically capture GIS coordinates while
registering sample details at the time of sample collection in the field and indicate the location from
where the sample has been collected.

This app works like other Geotagging apps developed for the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana. The app
contains farmers’ details including name, Aadhaar card number, mobile number, gender, address, crop
details, etc.

About World Soil Day:

World Soil Day (WSD) is held annually on 5 December as a means to focus attention on the
importance of healthy soil and advocating for the sustainable management of soil resources.

 UN General Assembly designated 5 December 2014 as the first official World Soil Day. The date
of 5 December for WSD was chosen because it corresponds with the official birthday of H.M.
King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the King of Thailand, who officially sanctioned the event.

 2017 Theme: ‘Caring for the Planet starts from the Ground’.

 Soil facts- and why is soil important?

 Soil is one of the most complex biological materials on our planet. Soil is the network of
interacting living organisms within the earth’s surface layer which support life above ground. The
nutritional value of the food we eat is directly related to the health of the soil in which it grows.

 Carbon is a master variable within the soil that controls many processes, such as development of
soil structure, water storage and nutrient cycling. Soil high in organic carbon content enables
better rainfall infiltration & retention – providing greater resilience to drought.

 Management: Soil erosion within conventional agricultural practices can occur at rates up to 100
times greater than the rate of natural soil formation. Natural processes can take more than 500
years to form 2 centimetres of topsoil. Soils are vulnerable to carbon loss through degradation,
but regenerative land management practices can build soil and restore soil health. Therefore,
 management of agricultural soils should consider the structural, biological and mineral health of
the soil (not just N, P, K) to produce nutritionally-dense food.

About the Soil Health Card Scheme:

It is a scheme to provide every farmer a Soil Health Card in a Mission mode. It is a scheme under which
the Central Government provides assistance to State Governments for setting up Soil Testing
Laboratories for issuing Soil Health Cards to farmers.

 The scheme will be implemented in all states to promote soil testing services, issue of soil
health cards and development of nutrient management practices.

 State Governments have adopted innovative practices like involvement of agricultural

students, NGOs and private sector in soil testing, determining average soil health of
villages, etc., to issue Soil Health Cards.

 The state governments will prepare yearly action plan on the issue and the cost will be shared in
the ratio of 75:25 between the Centre and states.

 The scheme assumes importance as the imbalanced application of fertilisers have caused
deficiency of primary nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium), secondary
nutrients (such as sulphur), and micro-nutrients (boron, zinc, copper etc.) in most parts of
country.

Soil health cards:

A Soil Health Card displays soil health indicators and associated descriptive terms. The indicators are
typically based on farmers’ practical experience and knowledge of local natural resources.

The card lists soil health indicators that can be assessed without the aid of technical or laboratory
equipment. The card, which will carry crop-wise recommendation of fertilisers required for farm lands,
will help farmers identify health of soil and judiciously use soil nutrients.