Dimapur, September 10 (MExN): The hills in India’s North East are seeing significant changes in the practice of ‘jhum’ cultivation driven largely by the emergence of markets which are becoming easier to access, according to a study.
The study by A Lozaanba Khumba titled ‘Agrarian changes in the hills of North-east India: The unlikely story of shifting agriculture’ was presented on September 9 at a webinar conducted by the History Department, Patkai Christian College (Autonomous).
In his paper presentation, Khumba said that there was a mainstreaming of horticulture in the cropping patterns. The people in the hills have largely shifted from planting rice to more profitable cash crops, he said. He explained that the markets becoming increasingly accessible was one of the factors driving this shift. “Farmers are now able to send their products not just to Imphal and Kohima but also Delhi and other metros,” he said.
He attributed this demand for organic jhum products to the increasing migration of people from the hills to the metros for reasons such as education or finding easier avenues for livelihood. Khumba added that the agrarian changes in the hills were also influenced by the quality of road, distance, time taken to travel. “Distance mediates agrarian change,” he said.
A significant downside to this agrarian change has been the breakdown of traditional institutions, he said. “The search for profit leading to breakdown of traditional institutions – village councils are losing control over community owned lands,” he explained.
The paper presented is the first of a webinar series being conducted by the History Department, Patkai Christian College. The webinar series which started on September 9 will conclude in October, informed a press release from the History Department, Patkai Christian College (Autonomous).
Khumba is a doctoral candidate from the Centre for the Study of Regional Development, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi.
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