Review of Pastoralist Livelihoods in Asian Drylands: Environment, Governance and Risk edited by Ariell Ahearn and Troy Sternberg with Allison Hahn

Abstract

Pastoralism plays an important role in the ecology of alpine habitats and the economy of rural people in some regions of India. The pastoralists move from lower altitudes of the Himalayas to higher alpine regions in summer and return back to lower altitude villages with the onset of autumn. The forested areas along the routes of transhumant pastoralists are affected by anthropogenic pressures, viz. grazing by livestock and tree lopping by the herders for fuelwood. To demarcate such areas and evaluate the effect of anthropogenic disturbances, a preliminary documentation of the routes is needed. Interviews were conducted using semi-structured questionnaires to elucidate the information from herders visiting Niti valley, Western Himalayas. The interviews found that most of these herders had common stopovers following a similar route to the valley from their respective villages. More than 70% of herders made their transit camps at Niti village and adjoining areas. They stay there for a few days and then the majority move on to higher alpine pastures of Geldung. The rest either stay back at alpine areas near Niti or in the alpine areas adjoining Gamsali village. These stopovers are areas which experience maximum anthropogenic pressure during livestock migrations, and the vegetation is the most affected. Documentation of migration routes will help identify such areas of high pressure and develop management plans to minimize the disturbances.