GS Paper I — Q6
Discuss the role of aeolian processes in desertification and land degradation. (Answer in 150 words)
हिंदी में प्रश्न पढ़ें
मरुस्थलीकरण और भूमि अवनयन में वायुजनित प्रक्रियाओं की भूमिका की विवेचना कीजिए। (उत्तर 150 शब्दों में दीजिए)
Model answer
Drafted with AI by UPSC Answer Check against this question's marking rubric, to the 150-word length. UPSC does not publish answers for Mains — this is one way to score well, not an official key. How we build rubrics and answers.
Aeolian processes—wind erosion by deflation and abrasion, transport, and deposition as dunes—drive desertification in arid and semi-arid regions, where loose, dry soil and sparse cover leave land exposed.
Wind moves particles by suspension, saltation and surface creep. Deflation strips fine, nutrient-rich topsoil, leaving desert pavement or lag deposits and lowering fertility. Abrasion by wind-borne sand sculpts yardangs and ventifacts and damages vegetation. On the Thar margins in Rajasthan, migrating barchans bury fields and shrink cultivable area, while dust storms carry soil far away, degrading productivity and air quality. Not all aeolian action degrades land, however: loess deposits, as on China's Loess Plateau, form fertile soils.
Human activity amplifies these processes: overgrazing and deforestation remove anchoring vegetation. ISRO's Desertification and Land Degradation Atlas identifies wind erosion as the leading degradation process in Rajasthan, though water erosion leads nationally.
Shelterbelts, dune stabilisation, vegetation restoration and regulated grazing can slow wind-driven degradation in India's drylands.
How this answer will be evaluated
Framework: Geography: explain the mechanism, then location follows; Link physical geography to human outcome
What earns full marks: Mechanism (deflation/abrasion) clearly linked to soil loss and landform creation.
Evaluation rubric
Each sub-part is marked on its own, against the marks and word limit printed on the paper.
- The answer Discuss how wind erosion, transport and deposition drive desertification and land degradation, how human activity amplifies them, and how they can be checked. 10 marks · 150 words
discuss— intro → 3-4 dimensions → example → balanced close
Must cover
- Define aeolian processes (wind erosion, transport, deposition)
- Explain deflation and abrasion mechanisms
- Link wind erosion to loss of topsoil/fertility and dune encroachment on farmland
- Human amplification (overgrazing, deforestation, dryland ploughing) and control measures (shelterbelts, dune stabilisation, grazing regulation)
Loses marks
- Confusing aeolian with fluvial (water) processes
- Narrating history of deserts without mechanism
- Ignoring the 'land degradation' aspect (focusing only on dunes)
Earns more
- Specific regions (e.g., Thar, Sahel)
- Aeolian landforms such as desert pavement, yardangs, ventifacts or barchans
- Vegetation loss as a positive feedback loop
- Transport modes: saltation, suspension, surface creep
- Nuance: loess deposition can create fertile soils
Extra mark
- 30-second sketch of dune formation or a barchan
- ISRO Desertification and Land Degradation Atlas data (wind erosion the leading process in Rajasthan; about 5.5% of India's area)
What "Discuss" is asking you to do
Lay the issue out from more than one side — how it arose, what is claimed for it, what is held against it, and where it now stands. UPSC attaches discuss to broad topics with several live dimensions, so coverage of the dimensions earns more than the strength of your opinion.
Structure that answers it
Set the issue up → the case as it is made → the case against → the dimension both sides leave out → where the balance now lies
Where marks are lost
Listing facts with no thread between them, or arguing one side throughout and calling it a discussion.
Practice this exact question
Write your answer and it is marked point by point against the model answer above — what you covered, what you missed, what you got wrong.
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