Impact of Flood on Soil Quality in South Central Laterites of Kerala, India

The study was conducted to assess the soil quality of post-flood soils in agro-ecological unit 9 of Kottayam district, Kerala. Representative surface soil samples were collected across the entire flood-affected area of this unit and analysed for key physical, chemical, and biological properties. Principal component analysis was employed to identify a minimum data set influencing soil quality in the region. The soil quality index was computed using a scoring and weighted additive approach, and soils were classified into low, medium, and good categories based on relative index values. Results indicated that 78.43 percent of the samples exhibited medium soil quality, 19.61 percent were categorized as low soil quality, and only 1.96 percent showed good soil quality.