Balancing Agricultural Growth and Land Degradation: The Key Role of Water Resources in Sustainable Farmland Management

Abstract

Agriculture plays a vital role in meeting global food demands, yet its expansion is often linked to challenges such as land degradation and water scarcity. It is important to identify changes in cropping patterns, their interaction with soil condition and water availability. This study investigates the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Normalized Difference Moisture Index (NDMI), Bare Soil Index (BSI), and Land Use Land Cover (LULC) by using multi‐temporal Sentinel‐2 satellite imagery during the winter cropping season (2018–2024). Results highlight pronounced temporal variability, with dense vegetation covered in 2020, while peak soil moisture was in 2022, reflecting the sensitivity of cropping systems to changing conditions. Furthermore, BSI index results show that the lowest values were observed in 2020, which indicate the highest vegetation cover in this year. However, the results of LULC reported that the cropping area decreased by −27.18%, while the built‐up area increased by 33.41%. This trend underscores the dual pressure of cropland loss and urban growth. The water bodies' covered area showed a minor increasing trend of 0.56%. The study emphasizes the complex association between the availability of water, the health of vegetation, and land degradation. To ensure food security and environmental sustainability in agricultural regions that have rapidly urbanized, it is crucial to implement integrated water and land management techniques.