Carrying Capacity Study of Teesta Basin in Sikkim - Affected ...

In the context of the various exogenous and geo-complex factors,
the system may be characterised as climate-soil-vegetation climax
system which controls dynamic equilibrium of slope in the ecological
sites. The frequency of extreme (catastrophic) meteorological events
during monsoon season has been considered in view of its importance in
the process of slope transformation accompanied with gravitation, slope
wash and linear erosion under fluvial environment of this site. As a
whole, the higher amount of rainfall (about 2300 mm) over the steeper
slopes has created a suitable environment for initiation of run-off and
subsequent soil erosion, slope failures, slides or sinking of land masses
in the area.
Depending upon the nature of the terrain and the steepness of the
slopes, the state can be broadly divided into following six (6)
physiographic zones as per National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land
Use Planning, ICAR, Nagpur as follows:
i) Summits and hill ridges
ii) Sides of hill slopes with varying steepness
iii) Narrow valleys
iv) Cliff and precipitous slopes
v) Zones of glacial drifts characterized by strewn boulders and
moraines, and
vi) Zones with perpetual snow cover
District-wise physiographic features are described as follows:
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CISMHE