Agricultural practices among Wanchos
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| Immature rice field |
Shifting cultivation is the most prominent type of agriculture usually followed in this region. Indigenous shifting cultivators have a vast store of
local knowledge about their particular landscape and how best to maintain it
for survival, and have much to teach the world about the efficient use of their
landscape for combined agriculture and forestry. This system involves series of
steps such as selection of a site in hilly slopes followed by slashing of
vegetation, burning of slashed vegetation after drying and cleaning the burnt
sites for growing crops of agricultural importance. After completion of the
cycle, the soil loses its fertility and a fresh site is chosen the following
year to repeat the same cycle in next season; whereas, the used plot of jhum
land is likely to keep fallow for about 8-10 years till it regains its
fertility.
The entire jhumming practice may assume as a wise
strategy planned and prepared by the ethnic people of this district which they
have learnt from years of experience and subsequently passing those experiences
to next generation. Their strategy is always simple and focus on deriving
maximum possible sustainable output from the hilly slopes in terms of
production of sufficient food items from cultivation of crops, collection of
timber from jhum fields, practice of mix farming ensuring crop.
This ancient and traditional management agriculture
system may be considered as the backbone of the modern developing society
because the knowledge on jhumming is the result of centuries close
interaction between man and environment. Even when there was no supply of food
grains and vegetables from other sources, this traditional agriculture
practices helped them to fight during the lean season. Besides cereals like
rice (Oryza sativa L.), millets like foxtail millets (Setaria italica
L.), proso millets (Panicum miliaceum L.), finger millets (Eleusine
coracana L.) and pearl millets (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R.Br., Maize
(Zea mays L.), they usually cultivate important domesticated and
subsidiary edible plant species such as Topioca (Manihot esculenta Crantz.),
Dioscorea sp., Colocasia esculenta L., sweet potato (Ipomoea
batatas L. (Lam.), Ginger (Zingiber officinale L.) and local
vegetables such as pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata Poir.), white gourd (Benincasa
hispada Thunb.), coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.), soybean (Glycine
max L. (Merr.), brinjal ( Solanum melongena Linn.), Solanum
nigrum L., chilli pepper (Capsicum spp.), bitter gourd (Momordica
charantia L.), tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum L.), and
sesame (Sesamum indicum L.). Thus, jhumming provides varieties of
indigenous food items throughout the year for traditional used such as
ceremonies, occasions and celebrations. Moreover, due to the undulating hilly
terrain, high rainfall, poor irrigation facilities and unavailability of plain
land, the permanent type of settled agriculture or terrace cultivation was not
much successful in this area. Hence, jhumming became the only alternative
means for sustenance.
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| Rice field of Pongchau Village, Longding |
Nonetheless, besides farming practices, the local people
also generally get involved in other activities such as fishing, hunting and
harvesting of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) in order to satisfy their
basic needs and demands. The entire traditional society in the district
revolves around the practices of taboos, beliefs, folktales and legends. For
instances, they perform many rituals during the time of sowing and harvesting
within the family, among villagers and also in the entire community.
Nonetheless, there are three major tribes and many sub-tribes in the district,
the methods of farming and rituals performed during the cultivation of crops
may vary slightly with the ethnic people and communities living in different
villages with social, physical, environmental and climatic condition of that
area.
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| People busy in harvesting of crops |
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| Fully matured rice field |
The
agricultural system is totally rain-fed and depends on monsoon rain for its
irrigation. Therefore, the cultivation of rice and other crops usually
commenced in between last part of February and early March, so that the
sufficient amount of rain water will be available for the seed to germinate.
However, in winter season the fields are basically kept fallow till next summer
is approaches to continue jhum cycle with the cultivation of
paddy in next phase just after the harvesting of millets and other vegetables
from the new field. Nonetheless, slashing of the vegetation of newly selected
site is performed in winter i.e. in the month of October. For performing the
farm operation both men and women labour power is used and with some local
implements like digging stick, small hoe, dao (traditional sword), and axe etc.
However, very recently besides jhumming few villages have started
establishing and maintaining permanent tea garden and wet-rice cultivation on
the plain lands.
