Pastoralism, a Sustainable Way of Life

Pastoralism – an ancient dynamic production system prevalent throughout the world – is economically productive and ecologically sustainable, and uses variability in a positive way. But pastoralism does not get the recognition it deserves.

Pastoralists are highly adaptable to variable and difficult environments and make dynamic use of resources; they have the ability to synchronize with other production systems, make optimal use of resources, and are ecologically friendly.

Pastoralists are believed to form 5% of India’s population, i.e., about 60 million people, inhabiting mainly the arid and semi-arid areas of the country. The pastoral communities are not one homogenous group; livestock is their chief asset and source of livelihood and the nomadic pattern of living enables them to make optimal use of dry fragile and marginal landscapes. Internationally, pastoralists are lumped under the mobile and indigenous community’s category, a space often taken by adivasi communities in the Indian context. While adivasi communities and Scheduled Tribes have a Ministry of Tribal Affairs, no such ministry exists for pastoralists, which accounts for the fact that there are few provisions for them despite their significant contribution to the economy and geographic spread across the country.

Basic services and benefits such as essential rations and those related to health and education are not available to the pastoralists as they have no permanent address and do not own land. In some states development groups are facilitating the process but a lot more needs to be done. Several pastoral groups have now made a claim to be documented under Scheduled Tribes for a better chance of recognition of their rights.

Pastoral production systems are unjustly blamed for degrading and destroying environments, though they have been known to make significant contributions to the maintenance of ecosystems especially those which are unsuitable for agricultural production. Pastoralists also share their grassland ecosystem with rare and endangered species of wildlife, and are indirectly responsible for their preservation.

The free market world and organic movement have been responsible for a change in perceptions about pastoralism which is slowly gaining acceptance and recognition for its value. In fact, surveys have shown that several non-pastoral communities have adopted this production system successfully. Despite this, pastoralists themselves have mixed opinions of the future – they admit that their lifestyle is fraught with hardships, risks and uncertainty, yet they feel that their profession has a future as there continues to be a huge demand for their produce.

Pastoralism as a profession across the country has a future; pastoralists make a significant contribution to the grassland ecosystem, and therefore deserve recognition and support.