Shifting agriculture is also known as slash and burn cultivation.

(i) Shifting agriculture is practiced by tribal communities of tropical forest lands.

(ii) The people make a small clearing in the forest by cutting the trees and burning them.

(iii) They cultivate the land for 2 to 3 years and when the natural fertility of the soil decreases they abandon the field and shift to a new clearing which is again abandoned when the fertility of soil reduces.

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(iv) The abandoned field is overrun by weeds and secondary forests.

(v) It causes soil erosion.

(vi) The produce is less and a large area is needed to support a small number of people.

(vii) It is a wasteful method of cultivation.

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(viii) It is practiced in the Zaire basin, in north eastern India by the tribal people where it is known as Jhuming.