Roundtable in Dimapur on Nov 20-22, 2017 Dimapur, November 15 (DIPR): The Government of Nagaland and Ministry of Development of North East Region (MoDoNER) in partnership with International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) in organising a thee day Roundtable on Sustainable Management of Upland Farming Systems in North East India in to be held in Hotel Acacia, Dimapur, Nagaland on November 20-22, 2017. The objective of the roundtable is to identify the technical and institutional options that the governments and farming communities can consider for the sustainable management, intensification and transformation of traditional upland farming systems in the North East of India, most notably the jhum or shifting cultivation. The event includes two days of discussion on various aspects of shifting cultivation from the perspective of forest rights, land tenure, environmental-considerations and the communities' aspirations. Eminent scholars on the subject from international, national, regional will deliberate on the issue of upland farming system. The decision makers from Government of India, the North East Region and State government will also participate in the deliberations. The North Eastern Region (NER) of the country is one of the 12 bio-diversity hotspots, with more than one-third of the country's bio-diversity. Climate change adaptation for North Eastern Region is critical as more than 81 percent of the population in the region is rural (Census 2011) and dependent on climate sensitive production systems and natural resources such as agriculture, forests and water availability. With a hilly and mountainous terrain, relatively low population density, deep soils, high rainfall and physical isolation from the mainland Indian Plains, the natural resource management practices, livelihood systems and food habits of people in the hill States of NER have evolved around a farming system known as jhum (or shifting agriculture), providing food and energy security to the communities. This largely self- sufficient system that met the different needs, including food, fibre and energy of the mostly rural highland communities in the NER is getting disrupted due to shortening jhum cycles as a result of increasing population and changing aspirations of the communities. Changing climate patterns is further exacerbating these trends. North Eastern States are developing differentiated strategies to manage jhum cultivation in a sustainable manner, both economically and environmentally. Two approaches presently being adopted in the NER are: (i) the extension of the jhum cycle to reduce the area deforested annually; (ii) the transition to sedentary and permanent agriculture. These options entail putting in place enabling and supportive measures in terms of land use planning, land tenure and land holdings, enhancing soil fertility, improving agronomic practices to enhance productivity, appropriate financial investment and markets while addressing issues of food security and income enhancement in a sustainable way.
