1. Shifting cultivation and its merit and demerit: An overview
Course Seminar On
Shifting cultivation and its merit and demerit: An overview
Presented by
Abhishek Raj
M.Sc. Forestry Final year
Department of Forestry
College of Agriculture
Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalaya
Raipur (C.G.)

2. Content: What is shifting cultivation? Steps of shifting cultivation
Farming cycle of shifting cultivation
Slash and burn
Status of shifting cultivation in context of world
Advantages and disadvantages
Effects of Shifting cultivation
Conclusion
Bibliography

3. What is shifting cultivation?
Shifting cultivation is a farming system in which land under natural vegetation (usually forest) is cleared by slash and burn method cropped with common arable crops for a few years and then left unattended after harvesting.
Traditionally the fallow period is years but in recent times it is reduced to 2-5 years in many areas.
Main function of fallow is to maintain or restore soil fertility and reduce soil erosion.
Shifting cultivation is often practiced by primitive tribes in the forested highlands of the Amazon Basin, Congo Basin, etc.
It is called ‘Jhum’ in the north-eastern hill region and ‘Podu’ in Andhra Pradesh and Orissa states .
It is considered most destructive for forest areas.
A variety of food crops like rice, maize, cassava are grown on the land mostly for subsistence purpose.

5. Amazon Basin

6. Steps of shifting cultivation:
1.Site selection
2.Slashing
3.Burning
4. Cultivation
5. Harvesting
6. Abandoning the old sites

7. Farming Cycle of Shifting Cultivation

8. Slash and Burn
Slash and Burn (another name of shifting cultivation) is mostly practiced in Central America, Madagascar, Africa, India, Papua, New Guinea, etc.

9. Slash and burn

11. Shifting cultivation: a global view
It is very primitive form of agriculture, which is believed to have originated in the Neolithic period around 7000 B.C.
A diversity of shifting cultivation systems is practiced in different historical, environmental and socio-economic situations in Africa, Central and South America, Southeast Asia and Oceania. (FAO, 1974).
It was once a widespread practice in Europe (Greenland, 1974 ).
Predominately upland rice in South east Asia, maize and manioc (cassava) in South America, and millet and sorghum in Africa.
Yams, sugarcane, plantain (dessert bananas), and vegetables are also grown in some regions.

12. Continued….
More than 6% area under tropical forests was converted to shifting cultivation between 1980 and 1990 across all tropical countries. (Ranjan and Upadhyay, 1999)
About 10% of forest land was converted to shifting cultivation in Asia during the (Singh and Marzoli, 1995)
In pioneer or frontier situations where ratios of fallow periods to cultivation phases are up to 10 or more, the system is stable, ecologically sound and reasonably efficient (Okigbo, 1981)
As a result of population pressure and various reasons for intensification of production, the fallow periods become drastically reduced.
Short fallow periods are no longer adequate to restore the soil’s productive capacity.

13. Continued…..
According to FAO, it is estimated that each year approximately 1.9–3.6x106 ha land of primary close forests, 3.4–40x106 ha land of secondary close forests, and 6.9–21.9x106 ha land of secondary open forests are being lost due to shifting cultivation. (Detwiler and Hall, 1988)
This system is practiced extensively in the north-eastern hill region comprising the states of Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Nagaland and Tripura and the two union territories of Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram and to some extent Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa and Karnataka states.

14. Continued… Orissa is a major state adopting this practice.
The tribal communities, viz.  Bhuiyan, Juanga, Kandha, Erengakola, Kutiya, Buniya, Saura, Jatapa, Paraja, Gadaba, Kamar and Koya are involved in this practices (Sahu et al. 2005)
85% of the total cultivation in northeast India is by shifting cultivation.
In India, about 5.0 million tribal families are practicing this system on million hectare of land covering 11 states (Sahu et al. 2005)

15. Terms used for shifting cultivatión in different parts of the worlds
Country or Region
Asia
Ladang
Indonesia, Malaysia
Jumar
Java
Ray
Vietnam
Tam-ray, Rai
Thailand
Hay
Laos
Hanumo
Philippines
Chena
Sri lanka, Japan
Karen
Korea
Taungya
Burma
Bewar, dhya, dippa, erka, jhum, kumri, penda, pothu, podu
India

16. Source: Manshard, 1974 ; Gourou, 1958.
Continued…
Terms
Country or Region
America
Coamile
Mexico
Milpa
Mexico, Central America
Icheli
Guadalupe
Roca
Brazil
Africa
Masole
Zaire
Tavy
Malagasy Republic
Chitimene, Citimene
Zaire , Rhodesia, Tanzania
Proka
Ghana
Source: Manshard, 1974 ; Gourou, 1958.

17. Formal agricultural region:

19. Area under shifting cultivation in tropics:
FAO, 1974

20. Tribal (Million) Families
SHIFTING CULTIVATION IN DIFFERENT STATES OF INDIA
State
Tribal (Million) Families
Total Area (Million
hectare)
% Area cover
Orissa
2.00
1.60
36.61
Tripura
0.19
0.49
11.21
Meghalaya
0.61
0.47
10.75
Madhya Pradesh
0.38
8.69
Assam
0.31
7.09
Manipur
0.36
0.26
5.94
Arunachal Pradesh
0.43
0.21
4.80
Mizoram
0.40
4.34
Bihar
0.23
Andhra Pradesh
0.11
0.15
3.43
Nagaland
0.12
2.74
Total
5.02
4.37
100.00
Source : Shifting cultivation in India, ICAR

21. District (Undivided) Area (ha) Estimated by land Sat.1. % Cover
SHIFTING CULTIVATION IN DIFFERENT DISTRICTS OF ORISSA
District (Undivided)
Area (ha) Estimated by
land Sat.1.
% Cover
Sambalpur
22.7
Keonjhar
22.0
Koraput
16.6
Ganjam
11.7
Phulbani
11.4
Sundargarh
4.4
Mayurbhanj
3.9
Kalahandi
3.1
Dhenkanal
2.7
Bolangir
0.9
Total
100.00
Source :"Agriculture in Orissa" by D. Lenka, 2001

22. CHANGE OF SOIL PROPERTIES DUE TO SHIFTING CULTIVATION
Soil characteristics
Before burning
After burning
Increase by
End of crop cycle
Reduce by
pH(1:2)
5.1
5.5
0.4
4.2
1.3
OC(%)
0.13
0.25
0.12
0.05
0.2
Available P (mg/100g.)
3.3
2.2
1.2
4.3
Available K (mg/100g.)
210
570
360 40
530
Exchangeable
Ca (mg/100g.)
7.15
9.46
2.31
2.82
6.64
Source :" "Waste land management" by Dhrubanarayan, 1992 (ICAR)..

23. Extent of shifting cultivation area in NE region

24. Status of Shifting Cultivation in North East India
State
Annual area under shifting cultivation (ha)
Fallow period (Years)
Number of jhumias families
Jhum land/family (ha)
Arunachal
70,000
3-10
54,000
1.29
Assam
69,600
2-10
58,000
1.20
Manipur
90,000
4-7
1.28
Meghalaya
53,000
5-7
52,000
1.01
Nagaland
19,000
5-8
116,000
0.16
Tripura
22,300
5-9
43,000
0.51
Mizoram
63,000
3-4
50,000
1.26
(Source: GBPIHED, 2006)

25. Advantage:
Small investment needed.
Simple growing method.
No need of animal labour power
Environmentally friendly because it is organic farming
Well-fertilized soil.
It may reduce the incidence of soil-borne diseases.
It can play a part in pest management.
Disadvantages
Not long term
Destroying habitats of wild animals.
Taking our life element: oxygen.
Deforestation.
Troublesome to move around all the time.

26. Effects of shifting cultivation
Shifting cultivation causes loss of flora and fauna which includes precious species of tree plants, shrubs, medicinal plants and minor forest products.
It is an easy method of deforestation.
The wild animals loss their shelter.
Causes heavy flood in the rivers below.
Siltation to the tanks, nallas, river and reservoirs.
Ecology is disturbed and distored which never restored.
Soil erosion: The intensity of erosion depends on slope, soil characteristics, crop coverage, depth of soil and rainfall pattern etc.

27. Conclusion:
The existing practice of shifting cultivation in tropical and subtropical countries has been identified as one of the anthropogenic and unscientific form of land use which is influencing the biodiversity to impede the ecological balance of the region.
Otherwise, jhuming has many benefits from livelihood point of view, but in long run it destroys the ecosystem balance because one inch soil formation in nature takes about 1000 years. But several inches of soil are washed out each year due to jhuming.
Also resulted in large-scale deforestation, soil and nutrient loss, and by the way affecting the indigenous biodiversity to a large extent.
Although shifting cultivation is a non-viable resource-utilization practice, tribals are still clinging to this primitive practice to sustain themselves and their families.

28. Reference: Detwiler, R.P. and Hall, C.A.S., 1988. Science, 239: 42–47.
Singh, J.S. and Singh, S.P.,  Forests of Himalaya, Gyanodaya Prakashan, Nainital,, p. 294.
Lenka, D., "Agriculture in Orissa“ Kalyani Publishers, New Delhi.
Dhrubanarayan, U.U., Wasteland Management, ICAR, Publication.
Sahu, S.K., Nayak, R.K. and Sarangi, D Sustainable Soil and Land Management Under Shifting Cultivation in Orissa. Orissa Review, pp
Subramanyam, N.S. and Sambamurty, A.V.S.S., Ecology, 2nd edn, Narosa Puublishing House, New Delhi.
Ranjan, R. and Upadhyay, V. P Ecological problems due to shifting cultivation.
Singh, K.D. and Marzoli, A Paper presented at the World Wildlife Fund Conference on the Potential Impact of Climate on Tropical Forests, San Juan, Puerto Rico, pp. 2–3.

29. Thanks