11/04/2021
Godfatherless Grasslands
Livestock rearing or pastoralism plays a significant role in the rural economy of India. About 70% of locals in our villages are directly or indirectly dependent on livestock for income. And therefore, no one can understand the importance of Grasslands better than the country whose GDP depends on Agriculture and Livestock. Despite this, we consider this serene savannah as 'wasteland', a completely derogatory name given to such a fragile ecosystem, possibly during the British colonial rule.
Look at this picture. Do you think it is a less important habitat in any sense? Recent studies also show that grasslands are also important basins for carbon sequestration, and therefore they have a significant role in combating climate change. Moreover, such habitats are home to numerous 'habitat specialist' species who can not survive anywhere else but the grasslands - for example, Great Indian Bustard, Blackbucks, Chinkara, Sandgrouse, Cranes, Indian Coursers etc.
What you see in the picture is the famous Naliya Grassland of Abdasa taluka in the Kutch district of Gujarat, India. This is also one of the Important Bird Area of criteria A1, as identified by BirdLife International. It is home to more than 25 threatened bird species!
Interestingly, the Kutch district's history says that it was known for its vast grasslands and people from afar used to migrate here with their livestock to get fodder. The large herds of livestock were considered a wealth then! Imagine the availability of unrivalled grasslands of Kutch then! Today, a majority of these grasslands are either degraded or transformed into agricultural farms. On the one hand, livestock has lost their grazing grounds, and on the other hand, farmers are more inclined towards the cash crops like Pomegranate and Castors. With this, livestock has also lost the by-product of crops, remains of harvested crop like Pearl Millet and Sorghum, which would serve as fodder. Owing to all these undesirable changes, now the same district has no other option than to beg for the fodder supply almost every summer. There is an urgent need to understand the importance of grasslands for the long-term survival of our livestock and to make each village self-sustainable in regards to its fodder requirement.
Shot with Nikon
