From frost to fields: Shepherds begin winter odyssey

With the onset of winter in the Kangra valley, shepherds, along with their flocks, have begun migrating to warmer areas in the lower hills of the state. These shepherds belong to the Gaddi community and have been migrating twice a year for generations. Every year, they suffer heavy losses, losing hundreds of sheep and goats to heavy snowfall and rain in the higher hills of the Dhauladhar during July and August. Besides, hundreds of sheep were killed in a lightning strike at a Gaddi camp in the upper reaches.

During summer, the Gaddi shepherds move to high-altitude areas such as Dhauladhar, Chhota Bhangal, Bara Bhangal, Lauhal and Spiti, Kinnaur and parts of the Chamba district. In winter, they roam across Una, Bilaspur, Kangra, Hamirpur and Sirmaur districts, searching for better pastures for their animals.

In recent years, changes in the snowline and climate, driven by global warming, have impacted their traditional routes of seasonal migration, making their lives risky and difficult. Global warming in Himachal Pradesh has caused erratic rainfall, cloudbursts and shifts in the snowline due to extreme weather events. Some regions have experienced intensified rainfall, coupled with unseasonal hailstorms.

A number of shepherds told The Tribune that due to global warming and unusual rainfall and snowfall in the state’s high-altitude areas, many Gaddis have stopped rearing sheep. Besides, grasslands have shrunk in recent years due to stringent environmental laws. They also noted that the younger generation is unwilling to take up sheep rearing, leading to an acute shortage of manpower for grazing animals.

Other challenges include the widespread occurrence of foot-and-mouth disease among the animals and frequent livestock thefts. These threats pose a major risk to the centuries-old traditional livelihood of the shepherd community.