The milk that ate the grass
India may be the largest producer of milk in the world, but at an incredible cost. In achieving this distinction, the country's vast cattle …
The goat gamble
It has been a slow and steady shift over decades. Forced by declining returns from farming in ecologically fragile areas, small farmers have been …
MUTUALLY ASSURED DESTRUCTION
Knowledge without power, and power bereft of knowledge. This, in sum, is the story of mismanagement of wildlife and protected forests in India. …
Return of pastoralism: How villagers fought a long battle to regenerate grazing lands, assist herders
With help from civil society organisations, India’s rural population managed to increase their profits from raising cattle
Keeping the desert at day
The extent of desertification of grazingland in North China has reached crisis proportions. Effective governmental policy is needed to maintain …
The common root
The ancient tradition that sanctified groves for the common good awaits a voyage of rediscovery.
Environmental scapegoats
Are goats responsible for increasing desertification? No, say many environmentalists and researchers. In fact, this hardy animal …
Vanishing green
Participants at a recent conference conference on man, animal and environment discuss ways to solve the problem of overgrazing
Uneasy truce
Stand-off ends between forest officials and villagers in Ranthambhore, but roots of the conflict remain
Forest fires - a trailblazer
Controlled burning of woodlands can be an effective tool for enriching the land and ecology. Dipanjan Ghosh looks at the possibilities
Desertification and grazing: Quash the dogma
Most policies to tackle desertification are bound to fail. The problem will get solved as soon as they become holistic
Harness silvopasture systems for local climate resilience
Silvopasture systems buffer against temperature and wind extremes, providing a favourable living environment for livestock
Got Fodder?
Manju and Mukesh Gupta have had to reduce their milk intake because the two rupee per litre milk price hike has become too much of an expense. …
Grazing animals play key role in maintaining soil carbon health: Study
Grazing by mammalian herbivores can be a climate mitigation strategy
One step too far: Madras High Court ban on forest grazing may hurt on forest dwellers, biodiversity
Madras High Court's decision to ban cattle grazing in Tamil Nadu's forests will have far-reaching impacts on forest-dwelling communities and …
'Open forests for livestock grazing'
Otaram Dewasi, Rajasthan's Minister of Dairy, Devasthan and Gaupalan department and India’s first cow minister, tells Down To Earth how the …
Paradise in peril
Galpagos, an archipelago straddling the equator 1,000 km west of Ecuador, is probably the world's best-known biodiversity zone. But alien species …
Killing blue bulls: are there alternatives?
Unless conservation area declared for protection has enough grazing field for herbivores and enough prey for predatory carnivores, straying will …
Deserted by policy
Rajasthan's livestock is facing a threat as grazing lands disappear and laws paralyse traditional economic incentives for keepers
High cost of fodder led milk price hike
First pulses, now milk. The common household is compelled to give up on its easy sources of protein. RAVLEEN KAUR found rise in fodder prices, …
These methods can help in sustainable pasture management
Forming a pasture land development committee at the local level is necessary for the development, protection and maintenance of pastures
Kathua incident reveals threats to pastoral nomads of Jammu & Kashmir
The gruesome Kathua rape was a reminder of the institutional denial of forest and land rights of Jammu and Kashmir's nomadic communities
Desertification in Africa: 10 things you must know
In Africa, desertification is said to be happening at an estimated 20,000 hectares per year
How 40 villages in Odisha came together to address water crisis
Charmalik has recorded a 2-2.5 ft increase in the surface and sub-surface water level since 2010
Dalit farmers in Kasauli march to common grazing land
They held a cattle grazing drive to show they won’t give grazing rights on the land, which the upper castes claim is theirs