Abstract: Degradation of land mainly through jhumming cultivation or slash and burning agriculture is the main concern in the mountainous tracts of North-Eastern India. Removal of vegetation especially tree species leads to major changes in an ecosystem. Soil respiration is one such important aspect of soil. It indicates the activities of soil organisms and supplying of nutrients to the growing vegetation. The present study shows that removal of common tree species in three types of slope in a five year old jhum fallow leads to a decrease in soil respiration. It was found out by comparing with plots treated with leaf litter and untreated plots. In the present location the increase in soil respiration due to treatment of leaf litter on steeper slopes was more than the gentler slopes. The reason being gentler slopes are in the upper tracts where human disturbances are more.