Withering of traditional institutions? An institutional analysis of the decline of migratory pastoralism in the rangelands of the Kailash Sacred Landscape, western Himalayas

Abstract

This paper looks at the impact of the traditional and emerging institutional environment on the practice of migratory pastoralism in the Kailash Sacred Landscape (KSL), a transborder region in the western Himalayas around the tri-juncture between China, India, and Nepal, where migratory pastoralists have been an important part of the traditional political economy. It develops a conceptual perspective of migratory pastoralism and its associated social-ecological base using concepts drawn from common pool resource theories. The customary patterns of migratory pastoralism are described, as are the intra and extra-regional factors that have led to its decline. Understanding the transformation in recent decades of the variables linked to the social-ecological systems of the KSL, such as the sociocultural attributes of the landscape's communities, the rules of resource management, and the biophysical attributes of the natural resource base, is key to understanding the decline of migratory pastoralism in the landscape. Recent geopolitics, national development trajectories, changing natural resource governance schemes, community adaptation strategies, and changing cultural perceptions all come together to shape the present day vulnerability of migratory pastoralism in this landscape.

Governing the yarshagumba ‘gold rush’: A comparative study of governance systems in the Kailash Landscape in India and Nepal

“…Most of the high alpine grasslands in the Himalayas of Nepal and India are still used as summer pastures for livestock grazing (Bauer 2004). Traditionally, these pastures have been common properties governed by communities through local committees, guided by social norms, common beliefs and socially and culturally shared understandings (Herrera et al 2014;Pandey et al 2017). In the late 1990s, Ophiocordyceps sinensis (English: caterpillar fungus; locally known as yarshagumba 1 ), a highly valuable product, was discovered on these grasslands at altitudes between 3000 and 5200 m (Winkler 2009;Bawa 2013, 2014).…”

“…Interviews and focus group discussions conducted in 2016 and 2017. , types of actors and management mechanism. Finally, the results were interpreted, compared and discussed.The high alpine grasslands in the Kumaon Region are traditionally used as summer pastures and were never of great interest for the Indian state authorities(Gerwin and Bergmann 2012;Pandey et al 2017). The State Forest Department hardly intervened in the local-level resource management systems for livestock grazing, although technically, all forests and grasslands in the Uttarakhand State are under their overall responsibility and supervision to manage and conserve the available resources…”

Against the Tide: The Future of Transhumant Herders in the Kailash Sacred Landscape of Nepal

“…Despite its significance, transhumant herding practices in the HKH region are declining (Banjade and Paudel 2008;Banerjee 2009;Namgay et al 2013;Aryal et al 2014a;Pandey et al 2016;Verma and Khadka 2016). Studies in Nepal reveal that transhumant pastoralism is facing multiple challenges due to institutional and economic reforms at different spatial scales (Banjade and Paudel 2008;Dong et al 2009;Aryal et al 2012Aryal et al , 2014aGentle and Thwaites 2016) and climate change (Aryal et al 2014b).…”

“…Policy changes are another major driving force for the decline of transhumant herding (Pandey et al 2016). Policymakers often frame herding as an outdated occupation that degrades forest and poses a threat to biodiversity (Agrawal and Saberwal 2004).…”

“…Based on these assumptions, policies have been reformed to establish protected areas, to privatize or nationalize forest and rangeland, and to transfer bundles of property rights to nonherding communities that deny the traditional forest and rangeland use rights of herders (Banjade and Paudel 2008;Ali et al 2016). Closures of the borders for political and security reasons have also restrained the movement of transhumant herders (Chaudhary et al 2014;Pandey et al 2016).…”