3). IT IS NOT UNCOMMON IN THE COURSE OF FIELDWORK TO ENCOUNTER ELDER...

1.3). It is not uncommon in the course of fieldwork to encounter elderly parents staying at home

in the village and working the fields while children pursue schooling in the nearby towns. This

has led to a ‘localized population decline’ (Cramb et al., 2009). In many cases, this results in

farmers cultivating a smaller field – much smaller compared to the fields they cultivated in their

prime ⁶ , contributing to the increasing fallow length.

Table 1.3. Migration in the study villages

Average no. of

Average

migrated

members per

size of

family

Village

family

Karuangmuan 6.2 2.4

Chiuluan 5.7 2.3

Akhui 6.3 3.4

Ijeirong 5.8 2.3

Bakuwa 6.3 3.3

Shingra 5.8 2.5

Apart from displacing valuable labor in the immediate context, it has contributed in shaping a

generation that cannot continue the old system that required hard labor throughout the year. It has

also raised an educated elite class of people who have moved out of the villages to settle in the

nearby towns. This group of people usually maintain strong relations with their parent village.

They also retain their culinary taste for ‘home-food’, thereby, serving as an important market for

jhum-based products. It may be noted that this phenomenon has become pronounced only in the

past couple of decades.

The extensive road networks that have penetrated deep into once inaccessible areas has also

contributed massively in transforming shifting agriculture. It has completely changed the way

farmers access and interact with the market. In the 19 ^th century and till the middle of the 20 ^th

century, markets were not easily accessible for upland farmers. Due to barriers posed mainly by

This is one of the most common answers for queries relating to ‘size of fields’. Mr. Hungamang Thiumei, 80 years,

from Shingra village narrated that 4-5 families now cultivate the field that his family alone used to cultivate.

Education is the primary reason for migration, followed by employment and work opportunities.

the terrain and distance, ‘batei banu ⁸ ’ or ‘going to Imphal/market’ was mostly an annual event. It

generated enthusiasm and activity in the village, much like some religious festival. It would be

undertaken mostly during the autumn seasons, in groups for the sake of security and involved at

least 3 to 4 days of walking. Due to the hardships involved, no more than 4-5 trips could be made

in a single year.

The season of ‘marketing’, distance involved and the mode of transportation dictated to a large

extent the nature of goods that were traded. Farmers would bring anything from dry (raja) chilly,

oilseeds, forest products like cane, oranges etc. to the market. In return, farmers mainly purchased

salt, clothes, oil, dry fish etc. A little wine would also be bought as a ‘chaengriu’ or ‘meeting gift’

to be shared with the neighbours who stayed behind ⁹ . Thus, hill communities were engaged in

trade with the valley and were far from being completely isolated. However, such an exchange did

not significantly impact the agricultural practice of the upland farmers.

In contrast, owing to concerted government efforts to improve road connectivity, markets ¹⁰ are

much more easily accessible for the upland farmers today. The practice of shifting agriculture is

therefore gradually being geared to the demands of the local markets. However, ‘distance’ and

ease of access as mentioned earlier, still continue to play a decisive role in farmers’ choices. The

role of markets and ease of access to markets in transforming shifting agriculture has been hardly

explored in India.

Evidences from the field

Improved connectivity linking jhuming farmers to market places has led to unexpected results.

First, due to the significant presence of local populace in the nearby towns, jhum-based products

have found an unlikely market. In fact, they are in considerable demand. Apart from the

‘traditional taste’, locals prefer vegetables from the jhum fields for their inherent health benefits

as these are ‘fertilizer-free’ ¹¹ . This is an effective sales pitch, not to mention that it is an important

motivation for many farmers to continue jhuming.

A term used by the Inpui tribe of Manipur to denote a trip to the market.

As told by Meizinthui Panmei, 85 years, from Akhui, a Rongmei village.

Markets here embrace a broad range of economic activities. It includes the largely organized activity that takes

place in the towns, involving middle-men and wholesale dealers. It also encompasses the make-shift market that has

developed around the army security-check point on the highway.

Locals use the term ‘fertilizer-free’ and not the term ‘organic’. There is, however, a movement to brand all these

products as ‘organic’.

Table 1.4. Which is the most important field?

Karuangmuan Chiuluan Akhui Ijeirong Bakuwa Shingra

Field type

No.

% to

of

total

HHs

Jhum (paddy + veg) 1 1.1 29 30.5 49 68.1 7 16.3 3 8.3 56 82.4

Jhum (veg + paddy) 1 1.1 14 14.7 2 2.8 3 7.0 2 5.6 2 2.9

Jhum (only veg) 29 33.0 4 4.2 2 2.8 1 2.3 1 2.8 1 1.5

Wet-rice/terrace 45 51.1 - - - - 30 69.8 30 83.3 8 11.8

Others - - 6 6.3 9 12.5 - - - - 1 1.5

No field 12 13.6 42 44.2 10 13.9 2 4.7 - - - -

Total 88 100.0 95 100.0 72 100.0 43 100.0 36 100.0 68 100.0

Note: ‘Other fields’ include vegetable field in Barak river valley (Chiuluan), potato field (Akhui), and turmeric field

(Shingra)

Table 1.5. Paddy production from jhum fields in 2017

Chiuluan Akhui Ijeirong Bakuwa Shingra

Harvest

No. of

(in tins)

% to

total

HHs

0-50 24 55.8 22 42.3 19 76 10 83.3 8 12.5