Indigenous Peoples’ Psychological Wellbeing Amid Transitions in Shifting Cultivation Landscape: Evidence from the Indian Himalayas

Dileep Kumar Pandey, Shantanu Kumar Dubey, Ashwani Kumar Verma, Lobsang Wangchu, Sreenath Dixit (), Chabungbam Victoria Devi and Gajanan Sawargaonkar
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Dileep Kumar Pandey: College of Horticulture & Forestry, Central Agricultural University, Imphal 791102, India
Shantanu Kumar Dubey: ICAR-Agricultural Technology Application Research Institute, Kanpur 208002, India
Ashwani Kumar Verma: R. B. S. College, Dr B. R. Ambedkar University, Agra 282002, India
Lobsang Wangchu: College of Horticulture & Forestry, Central Agricultural University, Imphal 791102, India
Sreenath Dixit: ICRISAT Development Centre (IDC), International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, Hyderabad 502324, India
Chabungbam Victoria Devi: College of Horticulture & Forestry, Central Agricultural University, Imphal 791102, India
Gajanan Sawargaonkar: ICRISAT Development Centre (IDC), International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, Hyderabad 502324, India

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 8, 1-17

Abstract: Recent changes in the shifting cultivation landscape (SCL) of the Indian Himalayan region—a global biodiversity hotspot—is of great concern due to their implication to conservation and economic development of the region and their impact on ecosystem services as well as the wellbeing of the region’s inhabitants. The present study investigated the changes in land use in the SCL and their impact on the psychological wellbeing of the indigenous people of the region. Longitudinal data for over 15 years on land-use patterns and cross-sectional data from 481 respondents across 52 villages representing six states in India’s North East that are part of the Indian Himalayas were utilized for the study. To analyze subjective wellbeing, Cantril’s self-anchoring scale was used, followed by focused group discussions to triangulate the self-reported responses. Results reveal that the respondents were aware of the effects of landscape changes on their psychological wellbeing. These changes mostly represented a decline in shifting cultivation (SC), land ownership, food systems, social cohesion, cultural fulfillment, the diversity of cultivated native plants, and the availability of wild edible plants. Although the decline in SCL led to a gain in the area under green cover, it led to a marked decline in the diversity of cultivated and wild edible plants. This, the respondents perceived as adversely impacting their wellbeing. Empirical analysis established positive effect of SC on the psychological wellbeing of the respondents. However, a decline in SC seemed to have had an adverse impact on the perception of their wellbeing and thus increasing the migration. Therefore, optimized and ecosystem-based approaches and frameworks of socio-ecological systems are essential to harmonize the ecosystem services with wellbeing of the people.

Keywords: agro-forest landscape; engagement and life satisfaction; indigenous people; plantation crops; psychological wellbeing; shifting cultivation landscape (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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