Extent of Shifting Cultivation and its Socio-economic Implications in Saiha District, Mizoram, India

Abstract

Shifting cultivation is a primitive form of agricultural practice that barely meets the minimum requirements of food grains. It is largely confined to the hill slopes, often extending to steep gradients in all the hill districts of the region. This practice normally involves the clearing of forests and is allowed to dry up and the residue is burnt up. The fields or the clearings are prepared and wait the onset of the rains. After which, with the broadcasting methods seeds are sown and crops are cultivated. These jhum fields are frequently located near the permanent settlement sites or located within accessible distance. These fields are temporary as they are used only for one or two seasons; after this, the same process is repeated in adjacent forest areas. In other words, there is a distinct rotation of fields that averages 3 to 10 years, this is the jhum cycle. With increasing population pressure, this jhum cycle has gradually declined. As a result this practice has become an uneconomical preposition.