The most widely spread and important soil of India is alluvial soil.
Four characteristics of this soil are :
(i) Alluvial soil is formed by the deposition of materials brought down by the Himalayan rivers.
(ii) Highly fertile.
(iii) Consists of various proportions of sand, silt and clay.
(iv) It is rich in potash, phosphoric acid and lime but deficient in organic matter.
(v) Soils in dry regions are more alkaline and can be made productive after proper treatment and irrigation.
(vi) They are of two types Khadar and Bangar. Khadar soil is the new alluvial soil which is fine and fertile, while Bangar soil is old alluvial soil which is coarse and less fertile.
(vii) It supports a large variety of crops like paddy, sugar cane, wheat and pulses.