Shifting Cultivation (Jhum, Slash-and-Burn);

It is a traditional farming system practiced mainly in hilly and forested regions where farmers clear a patch of land, cultivate it for a few years, then abandon it after soil fertility declines, moving to a new patch.

Definition

• FAO: Shifting cultivation is an agricultural system in which land is cleared by slashing and burning, used for cultivation temporarily, then left fallow to regain fertility.
• Known as Jhum cultivation in North-East India.

Geographical Distribution

• Practiced in North-Eastern India (Assam, Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur, Tripura, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh).
• Other regions: Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh.
• Globally: Amazon Basin, Central Africa, Southeast Asia.

Cycle of Shifting Cultivation

• Clearing: Forest/vegetation cut and dried.
• Burning: Biomass is burnt, releasing nutrients (ash = temporary manure).
• Cultivation: Crops grown for 2–3 years.
• Abandonment: Land left fallow for 10–20 years to regenerate vegetation. In modern times, fallow is reduced to 2–3 years → soil fertility loss.

Crops Grown

• Millets (finger millet, foxtail millet, small millets).
• Upland rice, maize, pulses, oilseeds, root crops (yam, tapioca).
• Vegetables and fruits in some areas.

Merits

• Suitable for tribal subsistence farming in inaccessible areas.
• Low external input requirement.
• Ash from burning supplies some nutrients (P, K, Ca).
• Maintains biodiversity (traditional multi-cropping).

Demerits

• Soil erosion, land degradation.
• Decline in soil fertility due to short fallow cycles.
• Deforestation and biodiversity loss.
• Emission of greenhouse gases from burning.
• Low productivity and unsustainable under population pressure.

Extent in India

• Covers about 3.9 Mha (approx.).
• About 8.5 million people depend on it in North-East India.
• Largest areas: Mizoram, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur.

Alternatives & Management

• Agroforestry systems (alley cropping, multistorey cropping).
• Terrace farming in hilly areas.
• Agro-horticulture: integration of fruit trees with annual crops.
• Taungya system: trees + crops in early growth stages.
• Improved fallow management: planting nitrogen-fixing cover crops.
• Integrated watershed management to conserve soil and water.

Key Facts for ASRB NET

• Also called Jhuming in NE India.
• Traditional form of extensive subsistence farming.
• Burning biomass = nutrient flush but temporary fertility.
• Major problem: reduced fallow period → land degradation.
• Government programs (ICAR, ICAR Research Complex for NEH Region) promote alternatives like agroforestry & horticulture.