PASTORALISTS IN THE MODERN WORLD

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Why do Pastoralists Move?

• They don’t have fields that provide food for their cattle for whole year.
• They wander in search of pasture and water for whole year.
• They also move in order to avoid harsh weather conditions. 
• This is also to protect their livestock from harsh weather conditions. 

Pastoral Group In India

Pastoral Group in the World

Changes Made During Colonial Rule

• The Colonial Government changed pasture lands into agricultural lands to increase land revenue. 
• Forest acts were put in place to categories forests and their products. 
• Criminal Tribe act was passed in 1871.
• The colonial government put taxes on Canal water, salt, trade and animals in order to increase revenue. 

Impact of Changes

• Decline of land for pasture made the life of pastoralists harder. 
• Their movement was restricted and they had to show permit to enter pasture lands.
• A fine was put in place if they did not follow the rules.
• Some tribes were also branded as criminals.
• They had to live under the extreme surveillance of local police. 
• Individuals were given passes. A cattle herder had to show pass to enter grazing land. 

How did they Cope with the Changes?

• The shepherds had to reduce the number of cattle in their herds. 
• They changed their direction of movement. 
•  some even began to buy lands and settle down. 
• Some started trading.
• Some lost their livestock and became labourers. 

The Gujjar Bakarwals

• They migrated to Jammu & Kashmir in 19th century in search of Pasture lands. 
• During winter they graze their cattle in the foothills of Shivalik. 
• Dry scrub provide food for their cattle.
• During summer, as the snow melt, they head north to the Kashmir valley. 
• The mountains are covered in green grass in summer, it provides nitrogenous food for their cattle 
• They descend back to the shivaliks in December.

Gaddi Shepherds

• Gaddi is the pastoral community of Himachal Pradesh. 
• They have similar movement pattern like Gujjar Bakarwals. 
• They spend their winters in the foothills of Shivaliks. 
• When the snow melts they move north to Lahaul and Spiti.
• They then move to high mountains in search of pasture lands and begin their descent in September. 

Gujjars of Garhwal and Kumaon

• Gujjars come down to dry forested area of Garhwal and Kumaon to graze their cattle.
• In summer, they move up high to the meadows in the high mountains.
• They make the best use of pasture lands available. 
• When pastures are exhausted, they move to other areas. 
• This movement helps the pastures to recover. 

Dhangars of Maharashtra

• Dhangars are pastoral community of Maharashtra. 
• They are Shepherds, blanket weavers and buffalo herders.
• They stay in the central plateau in Maharashtra during the monsoon. 
• The fields are green during monsoon and also they reap the bajra sown by them. 
• In November, they retreat to Konkan region, which is a fertile region. 
• The farmers of Konkan region welcome them because their cattle grazes in the fields and provide manure to them.
• The fields becomes good for sowing rabi crops. 
• That Dhangars return to their dry fields on the onset of monsoon in the Konkan region.

The Goras and Kurumas

• The Kurumas of Karnataka rear sheep and sell woven blankets. 
• These pastoral communities  move from dry lands to coastal areas based on the onset of monsoon.
• These communities  leave the area in the rainy season. 

Banjaras

• Banjaras are a group native to the villages of Rajasthan. 
• They move with their cattle in search of grazing land for long distance.
• They also sell plough cattle to the villagers in order to obtain grain and fodder. 

Raikas

• Raikas live in Rajasthan. 
• They stay in their villages in monsoon because grass is available for  the cattle. 
• In October, they move out of their villages to search for pastures and  water. 
• They return to their villages the next year, when monsoon arrives. 
• Different groups of Raikas herd different cattle like camels, goats and sheep. 

Why Pastoralists Move

• There are various reasons for the movement of pastoralists.
• The timing of their movement is calculated. 
• They move through different terrains and they develop relations with farmers while moving. 
• They also involve themselves in various trades, this includes trade, herding and cultivation. 
• All of these activities require different places, as such, pastoral communities move. 

Pastoralists in Colonial Rule

• Their lives changed considerably during the colonial rule. 
• The government, in order to increase revenue, transformed pasture lands into agricultural lands. 
• Various forest acts were enacted, this categorised forests. Moreover pastoralists had to take permission to graze their cattle in protected forest. 
• This restricted the movement of the pastoral communities. 
• They couldn’t spend more time than the time allowed for them to graze in the forests. 
• The British administrators were suspicious of nomadic herders. 
• They wanted these people to settle down and take up agriculture. 
• Nomads were deemed as criminals by the criminal Tribes Act of 1871. 
• The British government taxed most of the commodities in order to increase its revenue.
• Cattle were also taxed. Pastoralists had to pay taxes for every animal they grazed in protected forests. 

Pastoralism in Africa

• At current, more than 22 million people depend on pastoral activities to earn livelihood.
• Some of the communities of Africa are Bedouins, Maasais, Berbers.
• Members of these communities rear cattle for milk, wool and hide. They also sell these products.
• They also combine their pastoral activities with agricultural activities. 

The Maasai and their Problems

• They face continuous problems of grazing lands.
• The European imperial powers divided Maasai land between England and Germany. 
• Grazing lands were taken over by the colonists. 
• In this way, the Maasai lost half of their grazing lands. 
• The British government encouraged the local population to do agriculture, hence the land for pasture turned into land for cultivation. 
• Big patches lands were transformed into protected lands, such as the Maasai Mara and Samburu national Park. 
• That created a problem for the leftover pasture lands. The fodder always remained short. 
• Same as India, pastoralists of Africa were not allowed to cross territories without permit. 
• This affected the lives of pastoralists as well as the animals. 
• Pastoralists were not allowed to enter markets in white areas. 
• This condition led to a steep decline of the number of cattle owned by the Maasai pastoralists. 

Division of Maasai Communities

• Pre-Colonisation, the Maasai community was divide into two groups:
• The Elders – those who took administration of the tribe.
• The Warriors – those who were responsible  for the protection of the tribe.
• The Maasai Warriors also conducted cattle raids. 
• The British appointed chiefs of different groups who were responsible for the maintenance of the state. 
• They imposed restrictions on raiding and warfare, this limited the authority of the elders. 
• The British appointed chiefs gained wealth over time and then they became traders and settled in towns. 
• Their families stayed behind in villages in order to raise cattle, this helped them to survive drought. 
• The poor pastoralists had no money and pasture lands declined, so they had to give up on pastoral activities and move to towns. 
• Their they became labourers. 
• The distribution of Maasai community into rich and poor and disturbing their traditions changed the Maasai communities during the colonial period.